Logical reasoning PrepTest 146 · Section 3 · Question 10

Incorrect. This answer doesn't guarantee that she wins the election, just that any change to her platform would cost her votes overall. It might justify a conclusion that she should stick with her platform, not that that platform will guarantee the W.

Incorrect. First, this is more of a Strengthen with Necessary Premise answer than a Sufficient one in that it sets up a baseline. Second, it's not even Necessary, as everyone running could be in agreement on the same top issues, and it's only the secondary/less concerning issues that differentiate them.

Incorrect. The conclusion is that Whalley will win with this platform, so an answer about changing it won't justify that conclusion and is out of scope.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Strengthen with Sufficient Premise

Stimulus Summary:
Whalley sticks with current platform → Lose voters under 50 by a few points; win voters 50 and over by a larger margin
Therefore: Whalley sticks with current platform → Win election

Answer Anticipation:
Usually, Strengthen with Sufficient Premise questions that feature conditional logic fall into one of two patterns—they either chain several conditionals together but have a gap between terms; or they try to apply a conditional to a specific situation but fail to establish the sufficient condition is present in that situation.

Here, however, the argument jumps from a conditional premise to a conditional conclusion, both of which share a sufficient condition. Here, the jump is between the necessary conditions/outcomes.

In the conclusion, the outcome is that Whalley will win the election. That's a jump from the premise that established her current platform will lose among voters under 50 but win by a larger margin voters 50 and over. So in order for this argument to work, it needs to be established that winning the 50+ group by such a margin will win her the election. Any answer that talks about the relative sizes of the groups or directly connects winning the 50+ set with winning the election will serve as a sufficient assumption here.

Answer Explanation:
If there are more voters 50+ and Whalley will win them by a larger percentage than her opponent will win the under-50 set, then Whalley will get more votes and win the election. A larger percentage of a larger group is bigger than a smaller percentage of a smaller group—you don't need a math degree for that!

Key Takeaway:
Most Strengthen with Sufficient Premise questions featuring conditional logic are missing a link in a conditional chain, or fail to establish that a specific scenario meets the sufficient condition of a conditional principle. However, on occasion, there will be a gap in a different part of the argument, which is fine—just connect the ideas that need connecting!

Incorrect. Since the Consultant is arguing that the current platform will win, anything that's true about changing the platform is out of scope. Additionally, this answer choice is about perception, and the conclusion is about reality.