<p>"...the person who holds true power is the prime minister, which is elected..."
Question 1: the above is wrong because the prime minister is a person, yes?</p>
<p>"the number of people, which is quite small, is..."
Follow up question: then would the above be wrong as well? the "which" is referring to "number," so would that make this excerpt grammatically correct? </p>
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<p>Feeling, perhaps, that their votes do not matter, <insert answer=""></insert></p>
<p>A, B, and C start with: "the number of young people."
Question 2: Can I immediately eliminate A, B, and C because they start with number and not young people?</p>
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<p>Question 3: What the heck do "inasmuch" and "insofar" mean? I saw them as part of an answer, but they didn't sound like they were used correctly, and thankfully they weren't. But I'd still like to know just in case. </p>
Yes, “which” is wrong because “the prime minister” is a person. It should be “who,” or in the minority case, “whom.” I wildly prefer “who” since it sounds better and informal.
“which” in this sentence is referring to “number,” so of course it is grammatical.
Yes, you can eliminate A, B, and C. “The number of young people,” with the essential definite article “the,” refers to a number, which is not doing the “feeling . . . that their votes do not matter.” The only way you can use “number” and refer to the people is to use the indefinite article “a,” as in “A number of young people are walking down the street.” By using the definite article “the,” you are referring to a specific (“definite”) number which undermines the arbitrariness of “a number” which is essential to the meaning of “a number of people.” Nobody says “the number of people are walking down the street.” That sounds awkward and wrong.
“inasmuch” and “insofar” are typically followed by “as.” “inasmuch as” means “to the extent that”; or “in the view that” or “since”. “insofar as” means pretty much the same thing: “to the extent that.”
The solution is sufficient, insofar as it is practical. (If it were not practical, it would not be considered sufficient. So it is sufficient [only] to the extent that, or insofar as, it is practical. Much the same as saying that it is sufficient as long as it is practical.) </p>
<p>I will run insofar as I am physically sound. (If I were not physically sound, I would not run. So I will run [only] to the extent that I am physically sound. Much the same as saying that I will run as long as I am physically sound.)</p>
<p>Inasmuch as it is raining, this day sucks. (“Inasmuch as” here means “since,” or “seeing that”: Seeing that it is raining, today sucks. Notice the dangling participle “seeing,” which seems to illogically modify “today.” I don’t consider that so blatantly incorrect as to warrant revision in this post – that’s another topic – but the SAT does, so recognize it.)</p>