Political Parties Chapter 8

Political Parties Political parties run candidates for office. Parties have 3 parts: Party in the electorate Party as an organization Party in government

Functions of Parties Nominate Candidates Run Campaigns Give Cues to Voters Articulate Policies (Platforms) Coordinate Policymaking

Functions of Parties Parties sponsor grassroots mobilization, energizing members to support a candidate or proposal. Parties are a linkage institution connecting citizens with government.

Party in the Electorate Those registered for a party will likely vote for its candidates Ticket-splitting: Voting for candidates of different parties. The result is often divided government.

Party Organizations Party Machines exchanged votes for favors Patronage—when a patron in government gives political supporters benefits

Merit-Based Civil Service Pendleton Civil Service Act led to a merit based civil service and diminished machines. National parties are weak compared to state and local parties.

How Parties Target Voters Tools: Communication technology Voter-data management systems Campaign Consultants Purposes: Disseminate, control, and clarify political messages Enhance outreach and mobilization Raise Money

Parties and State Elections Closed Primary: voters must be registered with their party in advance and can only vote for that party Open Primary: independents and those registered to a party may vote in that party’s primary Caucus: meeting of voters Primaries and caucuses weaken national party organizations

National Party Organizations Draft platform Run nominating conventions Relative to other countries, our national organizations are weak.

Why Parties Evolve Regional realignments Campaign finance laws Changes in communication technology Changes in data-management technology

Realignment Party Eras When one party wins most elections because its coalition is bigger Critical Election An electoral “earthquake” where new issues and new coalitions emerge, beginning a new party era.

Realignment and Dealignment Realignment is the shifting of groups in a coalition, usually before a critical election. Groups leave one party and support the other party. Dealignment is the shift away from the two major parties and the rise in independent voters

Third Parties Rarely win elections Bring new groups and people into politics Major parties incorporate third party agendas into their platforms

Electoral Systems Winner-take-all system: First Past the Post/Single Member District Legislative seats awarded only to first place finishers. Proportional Representation: Legislative seats awarded based on percentage of votes received by party