The correct answer is (A).
(A) Strengthen (EXCEPT)
Step 1: Identify the Question Type
The question stem directly indicates that this is a Strengthen EXCEPT question, for which you need to identify the one answer choice that does not strengthen the argument. The correct answer could weaken or have no effect on the argument.
Step 2: Untangle the Stimulus
The historian explicitly indicates in the last sentence that her conclusion is that Land Party success in 1935 was due to addressing the concerns of farmers and small business owners, and the depth of the economic problems those groups faced. Notice this paraphrase defines the vague terms in the conclusion, such as "that year" and "these groups." The historian's evidence is relatively extensive. First, 1935 was the only year the Land Party was successful. Second, the majority of support came from rural and semirural areas, where the majority of Banestria's population lived. Third, the economic woes of farmers and small businesses were particularly acute that year. Finally, the Land Party specifically targeted farmers and small businesses.
Step 3: Make a Prediction
This is a classic LSAT argument pattern. The author observes an interesting phenomenon, i.e., Land Party's only victory was in 1935, and then concludes with an explanation for that event. In other words, the author makes a causal argument. The built-in assumption is that there is no other explanation. The classic weakener will suggest an alternative explanation, while strengtheners will bolster the proffered explanation or eliminate alternative explanations. Remember the correct EXCEPT answer could also be irrelevant.
Step 4: Evaluate the Answer Choices
(A) is correct. What the Land Party did in preceding elections is largely irrelevant to determining whether the specific factors the author identified in the 1935 election were responsible for that year's victory. The correct answer to an EXCEPT question is often the odd one out. Notice that this choice is the only one focused on urban groups, which were not part of the author's explanation for the Land Party victory in 1935.
(B) strengthens the author's assumption that focusing on the economic problems of farmers and small business owners caused those groups to vote for the Land Party in 1935.
(C) also strengthens the author's explanation that the Land Party's success in the national election in 1935 was due to economic conditions. This choice indicates that Land Party successes at other levels (not national) also occurred during periods of economic distress. This choice reinforces the correlation.
(D) strengthens the assumption that addressing the economic concerns of the rural areas garnered their votes for the Land Party, since no other party bothered.
(E) strengthens the idea that economic distress produced the rare Land Party victory in 1935 by increasing the likelihood that the constituents the party targeted would actually vote.
