Civics & Economics Goal 4 Development of Political Parties

Political Parties A political party is an organization of individuals with broad, common interests who organize to win elections, operate the government, and influence government policy During most of American history there have been two major political parties; for this reason, the US is said to have a two-party system

Growth of American Political Parties The US Constitution says nothing about political parties; in his Farewell Address of 1796, President George Washington warned against them

Growth of American Parties By the late 1790s, two rival political groups emerged, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson Anti-Fed/(Democratic Republicans) led one, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton (Federalists) led the other

Growth of American Parties Hamilton favored a strong national government (FEDERALISTS); Jefferson argued for more power for state governments (AF/DEMOCRATIC- REPUBLICANS)

Comparison of the Two Parties Democratic-Reps. Founded-1792 Dissolved-1824 Leaders included Thomas Jefferson and James Madison Beliefs: States ’ rights, Agricultural, Pro-French, Strict interpretation of the Constitution, Strong in the South Federalists Founded-1794 Dissolved-1820 Leaders included Alexander Hamilton and John Adams Beliefs: Strong national government, Industrial, Pro-British, Loose interpretation of the Constitution, Strong in New England and cities

The Democratic Party At first Jefferson ’ s group was called the Democratic-Republican Party by 1828 the party split Those who supported candidate Andrew Jackson took the name Democratic Party (1828); in 1830 a new party, the Whigs rose to compete Jackson founded the modern Democratic Party

The Republican Party In 1854 a group of Democrats and Whigs who opposed slavery left their party to form the Republican Party In 1860, Abraham Lincoln won election as the first Republican president, since then Republicans and Democrats have been our two major parties

Third Parties Third Parties are smaller minor parties that have competed for power in the nation ’ s two-party system; they have never won the presidency but major parties sometimes adopt their ideas

Third Parties Single-Issue Parties= promote a social, economic, or moral issue (ex. The Prohibitionist Party which wanted to ban the sale of alcohol)

Third Parties Ideological Parties= support a particular philosophy or political doctrine (ex. The Socialist Labor Party and Communist Party USA)

Third Parties Independent Candidates= sometimes third parties form around leaders with strong personalities who cannot get support from one of the two major parties (ex. H. Ross Perot and the Reform Party in 1992) Ross Perot-Reform Party and 1996

Election of 1912

Election of 1992

Third Parties There are many obstacles to third-party candidates winning major elections: they must obtain a large number of voter signatures to get on the ballot in many states and they have trouble raising money to compete against major party candidates

Other Party Systems Many democracies have multiparty systems; in these systems three or more parties compete for control of the government; several parties must work together

Other Party Systems Another type of system is the one-party system; in this the party and government are nearly the same thing (Ex. China and the Communist Party) Elections are an empty exercise because there are no rival candidates; one-party systems are not democratic systems

How the Parties Differ Democrats believe the federal government should be more involved in regulating the economy and in providing housing, income, education, and jobs for the poor Republicans believe if they help the nation ’ s economy grow, poor people will have a better chance of finding jobs on their own; they favor less government regulation of the economy as the best way to promote the growth of production

How the Parties Differ One way to identify differences between the two parties is to read the political document, or platform, that each party writes at its presidential nominating convention, held every four years The platform is a series of statements expressing the party ’ s principles, beliefs, and positions on election issues

How the Parties Differ Each individual part of the platform is called a plank; the platform communicates to voters what the party claims it will do if it wins election