PrepTest 146, Section 3, Question 22
Riverdale's Modern Party Chairperson: Maples, the Modern Party(38 more words not shown)
If the statements of Riverdale's(13 more words not shown)
- AMaples has the(17 more words not shown)
- BTannett would be(12 more words not shown)
- CFew residents of(11 more words not shown)
- DOf all the(11 more words not shown)
- ETannett is better(10 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Of course the Modern Party's chairperson favors the Modern Party candidate. That gives us a reason to be cautious about the endorsement, but bias alone doesn't make it false—and this question explicitly tells us to accept the statements as true.
What we’re looking for
So accept the unusually strong claim: every Modern Party member is better qualified than every Traditionalist Party member. Even the least qualified Modern member must rank above the most qualified Traditionalist member. The question asks which choice cannot be true. I'd look for a Traditionalist who supposedly outranks a Modern member in qualifications.
Working the answers
- A
We aren't told anything about seniority or former party membership. Maples could have joined the Modern Party recently after being expelled from the Traditionalist Party. The comparison concerns his current party membership and qualifications, not how long he has belonged or where he used to belong. Both details could be true.
- B
Tannett could be the Traditionalist Party's best potential mayor. The passage doesn't rank him against other Traditionalists. It specifically says Maples would be better than Tannett and separately ranks the parties' qualifications. Neither claim prevents Tannett from outperforming the other members of his own party.
- C
Residents' beliefs could differ from the facts we're told to accept. Few people might believe Maples would be better even if he really would be. The passage gives us the chairperson's claims, not a survey of public opinion.
- D
Maples could be the worst potential mayor among Modern Party members while still being better than Tannett. Other Modern members might be even better. The passage doesn't rank Maples's likely performance against that of members of his own party, so D is possible.
- ECorrect
Tannett belongs to the Traditionalist Party, while the Modern Party chairperson belongs to the Modern Party. The universal qualification comparison therefore places the chairperson above Tannett. E claims the opposite, making it incompatible with the statements.
Keep the wording precise: the contradiction concerns being better qualified. We don't need to invent a rule that qualifications guarantee actual performance in office. The stated qualification ranking alone rules E out.
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