Civics question 15 of 128
There are three branches of government. Why?
3 accepted answers
- So one part does not become too powerful
- Checks and balances
- Separation of powers
You only need to give one of these. The officer accepts any of them.
Source: official USCIS question list for the 2025 version of the civics test. This site is independent and not affiliated with USCIS.
Background
There are three branches so that no one part becomes too powerful, an arrangement known as separation of powers and enforced through checks and balances. All three phrasings are accepted. The framers had lived under a distant king and then under a Congress too weak to govern, and they wanted neither. So they split the work: one branch writes law, one carries it out, one interprets it. Then they gave each branch tools against the others. The president can veto a bill and Congress can override that veto. Congress confirms appointments, controls money, and can impeach. Courts can strike down laws and actions that conflict with the Constitution. The design makes government slower on purpose, on the reasoning that ambition checking ambition is safer than trusting officeholders to restrain themselves.
This background section is written by US Citizenship Test Practice to explain the civics fact. It is not part of the USCIS question list, and the official answer above is the one to give at the interview.
Where this question sits
It is part of Principles of American Government, inside the American Government section of the test.
Related questions
- 2. What is the supreme law of the land?
- 3. Name one thing the U.S. Constitution does.
- 4. The U.S. Constitution starts with the words "We the People." What does "We the People" mean?
- 5. How are changes made to the U.S. Constitution?
- 6. What does the Bill of Rights protect?
- 7. How many amendments does the U.S. Constitution have?