Political Parties and Interest Groups AP U.S. Government and Politics Unit 3

The Institutions of Government Policy-Making Institutions Congress President Courts Bureaucracy Linkage Institutions Parties Interest Groups Elections Media

Policy Makers Linkage Institutions People Congress President Bureaucracy Courts Linkage Institutions Elections Parties Interest Groups Media People Voters Activists

Party Elements

Realigning Elections 1828 1860 Years President Senate House 1829-31 Dem 1831-33 1833-35 Whig 1835-37 1837-39 1839-41 1841-43 1843-45 1845-47 1847-49 1849-51 1851-53 1853-55 1855-57 Others 1857-59 1859-61 Rep 1860 Years President Senate House 1861-63 Rep 1863-65 1865-67 Union (Johnson) 1867-69 1869-71 1871-73 1873-75 1875-77 Dem 1877-79 1879-81 1881-83 1883-85 1885-87 1887-89 1889-91 1891-93 1893-95 1895-97

Realigning Elections 1896 1932 Years President Senate House Years 1897-99 Rep 1899-01 1901-03 1903-05 1905-07 1907-09 1909-11 1911-13 Dem 1913-15 1915-17 1917-19 1919-21 1921-23 1923-25 1925-27 1927-29 1929-31 1931-33 1932 Years President Senate House 1933-35 Dem 1935-37 1937-39 1939-41 1941-43 1943-45 1945-47 1947-49 Rep 1949-51 1951-53 1953-55 1955-57 1957-59 1959-61 1961-63 1963-65 1965-67 1967-69

Era of Divided Government 1968? Years President Senate House 1969-71 Nixon (Rep) Dem 1971-73 1973-75 Nixon/Ford 1975-77 1977-79 Carter (Dem) 1979-81 1980? Years President Senate House 1981-83 Reagan (Rep) Rep Dem 1983-85 1985-87 1987-89 1989-91 GHW Bush 1991-93 1993-95 Clinton (Dem) 1995-97 1997-99 1999-01 2001-03 GW Bush 50-50 2003-05 2005-07 2007-09 2009-11 Obama 2011-13

National Conventions

The Convention “Bounce” Election Candidate Bounce Winner Margin 2008 Obama +2 McCain +7 2004 W. Bush Kerry +3 2000 +8 Gore -0.5 1996 Dole +11 Clinton +5 +9 1992 +16 H.W. Bush +6 1988 Dukakis

2008 Conventions Roll-Call Vote Republican National Convention Candidates Popular Votes (Primaries) Delegates Won Floor Vote (Convention) McCain 46.6% 56% 98.5% Romney 22.2% 6% 0.08% Huckabee 20.1% 8% Paul 5.6% <1% 0.63% Giuliani 2.9% 0% Others 2.6% 27% uncommitted 0.84% not voting

2008 Conventions Roll-Call Vote Democratic National Convention Candidates Popular Votes (Primaries) Delegates Won Pledged Superdelegates Floor Vote (Convention) *2,117 to win Obama 48.1% 1,828 478 3,188 Clinton 48.0% 1,726 247 1,010 Others 3.9% 5 Uncommitted 99 Clinton moves to nominate Obama (5:00)

National Committee Chairs Democrats (DNC) Debbie Wasserman Schultz Republicans (RNC) Reince Priebus

The Minor Parties

Minor Party “Success” Year Candidate Party Popular Votes Electoral Votes 1832 William Wirt Anti-Masonic 8% 7 1848 Martin Van Buren Free Soil 10% 1856 Millard Fillmore American/Know-Nothing 22% 8 1860 John Bell Constitutional Union 13% 39 1892 James Weaver Populist 9% 22 1912 Theodore Roosevelt Progressive/Bull Moose 27% 88 Eugene V. Debs Socialist 6% 1924 Robert LaFollette Progressive 17% 13 1948 Strom Thurmond States’ Rights 2.4% 1968 George Wallace American Independent 14% 46 1980 John Anderson Independent 7% 1992 Ross Perot 19% 1996 Reform 2000 Ralph Nader Green 2.7%

Presidential Debates

Commission on Presidential Debates Non-profit organization founded in 1987 to sponsor and organize the presidential and vice-presidential debates The League of Women Voters withdrew its sponsorship of the debates in 1988 after the Democratic and Republican campaigns secretly agreed to a "memorandum of understanding" that would decide: which candidates could participate in the debates which individuals would be panelists (and therefore ask questions) and even the height of the podiums The League rejected the demands and said they were withdrawing support for the debates because "the demands of the two campaign organizations would perpetrate a fraud on the American voter" Bob Barr criticizes the CoPD (3:40)

Election of 2000

Election of 2000 National Result Candidate PV EV Bush Gore Nader 47.9% 271 Gore 48.4% 266* Nader 2.7% Florida Result Candidate PV EV Bush (2,912,800) 48.85% 25 Gore (2,912,300) 48.84% Nader (97,500) 1.63% * 1 elector abstained

Election of 1844 New York Polk 237,600 Clay 232,500 Birney 15,800

What if Clay had won New York? Candidate Actual Electoral College result Electoral College result if Clay had won New York James K. Polk (Democrat) 170  134 Henry Clay (Whig) 105 141  James G. Birney (Liberty)

Election of 1912

Election of 1912 Candidate Party EV PV If Reps stayed united? Wilson Democrat 435 41.8% Taft Republican 8 23.2% 50.6% Roosevelt Bull Moose 88 27.4% Debs Socialist 6.0% Chafin Prohibition 1.4%

Minor Party Research Assignment Types of parties: Ideological parties? What ideology? Single-issue parties? What issue? Other issues? Economic protest? When? What types of reform? Factional/splinter? From what party? Why? Impact on American politics: Did your party impact an election (fed, state, local)? Did your party have a non-electoral impact on politics? What type of impact could your party have? Other interesting information?