2008 U.S. citizenship test: all 100 civics questions and answers
If you filed your N-400 before October 20, 2025, you take the 2008 test, not the 2025 one. The officer asks up to 10 of these 100 questions and you need 6 correct.
Who takes the 2008 test
- You filed Form N-400 before October 20, 2025: 2008 test. Filed on or after that date: 2025 test (128 questions, 20 asked, 12 to pass).
- The officer asks up to 10 questions out loud in English. You pass with 6 correct.
- Age 65+ with 20 years as a permanent resident: you study only the questions marked 65/20, and still take the version that matches your filing date.
- Some answers depend on where you live: your senators, your representative, your governor and your state capital.
Filed on or after October 20, 2025? Practise the 2025 test (128 questions) →
Practice test: 10 questions, like the interview
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All 100 questions with answers
100 questions-
#0
What is the supreme law of the land?
Answer: The Constitution
Accepted answers: The Constitution
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#0
What does the Constitution do?
Answer: Sets up the government
Accepted answers: Sets up the government; Defines the government; Protects basic rights of Americans
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#0
The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?
Answer: We the People
Accepted answers: We the People
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#0
What is an amendment?
Answer: A change to the Constitution
Accepted answers: A change (to the Constitution); An addition (to the Constitution)
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#0
What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?
Answer: The Bill of Rights
Accepted answers: The Bill of Rights
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#0
How many amendments does the Constitution have?
Answer: Twenty-seven (27)
Accepted answers: Twenty-seven (27)
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#0
What did the Declaration of Independence do?
Answer: Declared our independence from Great Britain
Accepted answers: Announced our independence (from Great Britain); Declared our independence (from Great Britain); Said that the United States is free (from Great Britain)
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#0
What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
Answer: Life and liberty
Accepted answers: Life; Liberty; Pursuit of happiness
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#0
What is freedom of religion?
Answer: You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion
Accepted answers: You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion
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#0
What is the "rule of law"?
Answer: No one is above the law
Accepted answers: Everyone must follow the law; Leaders must obey the law; Government must obey the law; No one is above the law
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#0
What stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful?
Answer: Checks and balances
Accepted answers: Checks and balances; Separation of powers
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#0
Who is in charge of the executive branch?
Answer: The President
Accepted answers: The President
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#0
Who makes federal laws?
Answer: Congress
Accepted answers: Congress; Senate and House (of Representatives); (U.S. or national) legislature
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#0
How many U.S. Senators are there?
Answer: One hundred (100)
Accepted answers: One hundred (100)
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#0
We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
Answer: Six (6)
Accepted answers: Six (6)
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#0
The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
Answer: Four hundred thirty-five (435)
Accepted answers: Four hundred thirty-five (435)
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#0
We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
Answer: Two (2)
Accepted answers: Two (2)
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#0
Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
Answer: All people of the state
Accepted answers: All people of the state
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#0
Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
Answer: Because of the state's population
Accepted answers: (Because of) the state's population; (Because) they have more people; (Because) some states have more people
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#0
We elect a President for how many years?
Answer: Four (4)
Accepted answers: Four (4)
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#0
What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?
Answer: JD Vance
Accepted answers: Check uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the current name.
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#0
If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
Answer: The Vice President
Accepted answers: The Vice President
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#0
If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
Answer: The Speaker of the House
Accepted answers: The Speaker of the House
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#0
Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?
Answer: The President
Accepted answers: The President
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#0
Who signs bills to become laws?
Answer: The President
Accepted answers: The President
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#0
Who vetoes bills?
Answer: The President
Accepted answers: The President
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#0
What does the President's Cabinet do?
Answer: Advises the President
Accepted answers: Advises the President
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#0
What are two Cabinet-level positions?
Answer: Secretary of State and Attorney General
Accepted answers: Secretary of Agriculture; Secretary of Commerce; Secretary of Defense; Secretary of Education; Secretary of Energy; Secretary of Health and Human Services; Secretary of Homeland Security; Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Secretary of the Interior; Secretary of Labor; Secretary of State; Secretary of Transportation; Secretary of the Treasury; Secretary of Veterans Affairs; Attorney General; Vice President
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#0
What does the judicial branch do?
Answer: Decides if a law goes against the Constitution
Accepted answers: Reviews laws; Explains laws; Resolves disputes (disagreements); Decides if a law goes against the Constitution
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#0
What is the highest court in the United States?
Answer: The Supreme Court
Accepted answers: The Supreme Court
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#0
How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
Answer: 9
Accepted answers: Nine (9)
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#0
Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?
Answer: John Roberts
Accepted answers: Check uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the current name.
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#0
Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government?
Answer: To print money
Accepted answers: To print money; To declare war; To create an army; To make treaties
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#0
Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?
Answer: Give a driver's license
Accepted answers: Provide schooling and education; Provide protection (police); Provide safety (fire departments); Give a driver's license; Approve zoning and land use
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#0
What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?
Answer: Mike Johnson
Accepted answers: Check uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the current name.
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#0
There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
Answer: Citizens eighteen and older can vote
Accepted answers: Citizens eighteen (18) and older (can vote); You don't have to pay (a poll tax) to vote; Any citizen can vote. (Women and men can vote.); A male citizen of any race (can vote)
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#0
Name one right only for United States citizens.
Answer: Vote in a federal election
Accepted answers: Vote in a federal election; Run for federal office
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#0
What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
Answer: Freedom of speech and freedom of religion
Accepted answers: Freedom of expression; Freedom of speech; Freedom of assembly; Freedom to petition the government; Freedom of religion; The right to bear arms
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#0
What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
Answer: The United States
Accepted answers: The United States; The flag
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#0
What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
Answer: Obey the laws of the United States
Accepted answers: Give up loyalty to other countries; Defend the Constitution and laws of the United States; Obey the laws of the United States; Serve in the U.S. military (if needed); Serve (do important work for) the nation (if needed); Be loyal to the United States
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#0
What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
Answer: Vote and join a civic group
Accepted answers: Vote; Join a political party; Help with a campaign; Join a civic group; Join a community group; Give an elected official your opinion on an issue; Call Senators and Representatives; Publicly support or oppose an issue or policy; Run for office; Write to a newspaper
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#0
When must all men register for the Selective Service?
Answer: At age eighteen (18)
Accepted answers: At age eighteen (18); Between eighteen (18) and twenty-six (26)
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#0
What is one reason colonists came to America?
Answer: Religious freedom
Accepted answers: Freedom; Political liberty; Religious freedom; Economic opportunity; Practice their religion; Escape persecution
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#0
Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
Answer: Native Americans
Accepted answers: American Indians; Native Americans
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#0
What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?
Answer: People from Africa
Accepted answers: Africans; People from Africa
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#0
Why did the colonists fight the British?
Answer: Because they didn't have self-government
Accepted answers: Because of high taxes (taxation without representation); Because the British army stayed in their houses (boarding, quartering); Because they didn't have self-government
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#0
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
Answer: Thomas Jefferson
Accepted answers: (Thomas) Jefferson
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#0
When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
Answer: July 4, 1776
Accepted answers: July 4, 1776
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#0
There were 13 original states. Name three.
Answer: New York, Virginia, Georgia
Accepted answers: New Hampshire; Massachusetts; Rhode Island; Connecticut; New York; New Jersey; Pennsylvania; Delaware; Maryland; Virginia; North Carolina; South Carolina; Georgia
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#0
What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
Answer: The Constitution was written
Accepted answers: The Constitution was written; The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution
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#0
When was the Constitution written?
Answer: 1787
Accepted answers: 1787
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#0
The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
Answer: James Madison
Accepted answers: (James) Madison; (Alexander) Hamilton; (John) Jay; Publius
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#0
What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?
Answer: Started the first free libraries
Accepted answers: U.S. diplomat; Oldest member of the Constitutional Convention; First Postmaster General of the United States; Writer of "Poor Richard's Almanac"; Started the first free libraries
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#0
Who is the "Father of Our Country"?
Answer: George Washington
Accepted answers: (George) Washington
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#0
What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
Answer: The Louisiana Territory
Accepted answers: The Louisiana Territory; Louisiana
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#0
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
Answer: The Civil War
Accepted answers: War of 1812; Mexican-American War; Civil War; Spanish-American War
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#0
Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.
Answer: The Civil War
Accepted answers: The Civil War; The War between the States
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#0
Name one problem that led to the Civil War.
Answer: Slavery
Accepted answers: Slavery; Economic reasons; States' rights
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#0
What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
Answer: Freed slaves in the Confederacy
Accepted answers: Freed the slaves; Freed slaves in the Confederacy; Freed slaves in the Confederate states; Freed slaves in most Southern states
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#0
What did Susan B. Anthony do?
Answer: Fought for women's rights
Accepted answers: Fought for women's rights; Fought for civil rights
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#0
Who was President during World War I?
Answer: Woodrow Wilson
Accepted answers: (Woodrow) Wilson
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#0
Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
Answer: Franklin Roosevelt
Accepted answers: (Franklin) Roosevelt
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#0
Who did the United States fight in World War II?
Answer: Japan, Germany, and Italy
Accepted answers: Japan, Germany, and Italy
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#0
Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
Answer: World War II
Accepted answers: World War II
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#0
During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
Answer: Communism
Accepted answers: Communism
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#0
What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
Answer: Civil rights movement
Accepted answers: Civil rights (movement)
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#0
What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?
Answer: Terrorists attacked the United States
Accepted answers: Terrorists attacked the United States
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#0
Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
Answer: Navajo
Accepted answers: Cherokee; Navajo; Sioux; Chippewa; Choctaw; Pueblo; Apache; Iroquois; Creek; Blackfeet; Seminole; Cheyenne; Arawak; Shawnee; Mohegan; Huron; Oneida; Lakota; Crow; Teton; Hopi; Inuit
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#0
Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.
Answer: Mississippi River
Accepted answers: Missouri (River); Mississippi (River)
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#0
What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?
Answer: Pacific Ocean
Accepted answers: Pacific (Ocean)
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#0
What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?
Answer: Atlantic Ocean
Accepted answers: Atlantic (Ocean)
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#0
Name one U.S. territory.
Answer: Puerto Rico
Accepted answers: Puerto Rico; U.S. Virgin Islands; American Samoa; Northern Mariana Islands; Guam
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#0
Name one state that borders Canada.
Answer: Michigan
Accepted answers: Maine; New Hampshire; Vermont; New York; Pennsylvania; Ohio; Michigan; Minnesota; North Dakota; Montana; Idaho; Washington; Alaska
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#0
Name one state that borders Mexico.
Answer: Arizona
Accepted answers: California; Arizona; New Mexico; Texas
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#0
Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
Answer: Because there were 13 original colonies
Accepted answers: Because there were 13 original colonies; Because the stripes represent the original colonies
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#0
What is the name of the national anthem?
Answer: The Star-Spangled Banner
Accepted answers: The Star-Spangled Banner
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#0
Name two national U.S. holidays.
Answer: Labor Day and Thanksgiving
Accepted answers: New Year's Day; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; Presidents' Day; Memorial Day; Juneteenth; Independence Day; Labor Day; Columbus Day; Veterans Day; Thanksgiving; Christmas
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#0 · 65/20
What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?
Answer: Religion
Accepted answers: Speech; Religion; Assembly; Press; Petition the government
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#0 · 65/20
What is the economic system in the United States?
Answer: Capitalist economy
Accepted answers: Capitalist economy; Market economy
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#0 · 65/20
Name one branch or part of the government.
Answer: Congress
Accepted answers: Congress; Legislative; President; Executive; The courts; Judicial
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#0 · 65/20
What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
Answer: The Senate and House of Representatives
Accepted answers: The Senate and House (of Representatives)
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#0 · 65/20
In what month do we vote for President?
Answer: November
Accepted answers: November
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#0 · 65/20
What is the name of the President of the United States now?
Answer: Donald Trump
Accepted answers: Check uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates for the current name.
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#0 · 65/20
What are the two major political parties in the United States?
Answer: Democratic and Republican
Accepted answers: Democratic and Republican
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#0 · 65/20
What is one responsibility that is only for United States citizens?
Answer: Serve on a jury
Accepted answers: Serve on a jury; Vote in a federal election
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#0 · 65/20
How old do citizens have to be to vote for President?
Answer: Eighteen (18) and older
Accepted answers: Eighteen (18) and older
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#0 · 65/20
When is the last day you can send in federal income tax forms?
Answer: April 15
Accepted answers: April 15
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#0 · 65/20
Who was the first President?
Answer: George Washington
Accepted answers: (George) Washington
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#0 · 65/20
What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?
Answer: Led the United States during the Civil War
Accepted answers: Freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation); Saved (or preserved) the Union; Led the United States during the Civil War
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#0 · 65/20
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.
Answer: World War II
Accepted answers: World War I; World War II; Korean War; Vietnam War; (Persian) Gulf War
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#0 · 65/20
What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?
Answer: Fought for civil rights
Accepted answers: Fought for civil rights; Worked for equality for all Americans
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#0 · 65/20
What is the capital of the United States?
Answer: Washington, D.C.
Accepted answers: Washington, D.C
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#0 · 65/20
Where is the Statue of Liberty?
Answer: New York Harbor
Accepted answers: New York (Harbor); Liberty Island; [Also acceptable are New Jersey, near New York City, and on the Hudson (River).]
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#0 · 65/20
Why does the flag have 50 stars?
Answer: Because there are 50 states
Accepted answers: Because there is one star for each state; Because each star represents a state; Because there are 50 states
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#0 · 65/20
When do we celebrate Independence Day?
Answer: July 4
Accepted answers: July 4
#20 · 65/20
Who is one of your state's U.S. Senators now?
Answer: Answers will vary. Find yours on senate.gov. (District of Columbia residents and residents of U.S. territories should answer that D.C. or the territory has no U.S. Senators.)
#23
Name your U.S. Representative.
Answer: Answers will vary. Find yours on house.gov.
#43
Who is the Governor of your state now?
Answer: Answers will vary. (District of Columbia residents should answer that D.C. does not have a Governor.)
#44 · 65/20
What is the capital of your state?
Answer: Answers will vary. (District of Columbia residents should answer that D.C. is not a state and does not have a capital.)
#46
What is the political party of the President now?
Answer: Republican (Republican Party). Check the current answer before your interview.
Source: USCIS, 100 Civics (History and Government) Questions and Answers (2008 version). uscis.gov ↗