POLITICAL PARTIES

What is a Political Party? Group of persons who seek to control the government and affect public policy How will they do this? Win elections and hold office Party members share: Common beliefs and principles Commitment to set of public policies

U.S. Political Parties Does this definition apply to our major parties? Are the Democrats or Republicans really concerned with the issues? OR, are they concerned with winning elections? Election-oriented So, why all the talk about the issues? Votes…voters want to hear them talk about the issues

Party Functions Nominating Candidates Support candidates financially Select candidates for public office and present them to the voters Support candidates financially Informing and Activating Supporters Educating voters (websites, social media, blogs, online fundraising, online chats, internet campaign ads, and instant news) Take a stand on issues & criticize the opponents views News media plays a major role

Party Functions Acts as a watchdog Party out of power watches the party in power (party that controls the White House) Criticizes what is done in behavior and policy Urges voters to vote them out Forces officeholders to be more responsive to popular concerns

The Two-Party System Why do we have a two-party system? Historical Basis Force of Tradition Electoral System American Ideological Consensus

The Historical Basis Rooted in the earliest days of our nation Did the Framers want political parties? No, but parties were born out of the debate over ratification of the Constitution Federalists and Anti-Federalists What were they afraid of? What would parties do that would be so bad? Fearful that they would divide the nation Do they? No, in fact, they unify because they both take middle of the road stands on issues to attract voters

The Force of Tradition Human institutions are self- perpetuating. Americans accept it We have a two-party system because we’ve always had a two-party system As a result, minor parties have made little headway and struggle to survive

The Electoral System The system is set up in such a way that only 2 parties have much of a chance Single-member districts Only one candidate is elected to office Voters feel as though votes for minor party candidates are wasted votes The 2 major parties work together to write election laws in such a way as to make life difficult for minor parties Hard to get on the ballot

The American Ideological Consensus The US is a pluralistic society (several distinct cultures and groups) but Americans tend to think alike on issues Parties move to the middle to attract the most voters

Other Political Systems: Multiparty One-Party Parties represent a wide variety of class, religious, sectional, and political interests Tends to make government unstable Dictatorships Party of the ruler is only one allowed In regions of the US, 1 party tends to dominate Two-party competition is spreading

Party Membership Voluntary…a person is or isn’t a member of a party based on personal choice Influenced by family, socioeconomic status, age, education, residence, significant events

Republican Party White Protestant Businessmen Professionals Rich

Democratic Party Minorities Jewish Catholics Intellectuals Laborers Younger voters poor

The Nation’s First Parties Federalists Democratic-Republicans Led by Alexander Hamilton Liberal Constructionists Wanted a stronger national government Appealed to financial, manufacturing, commercial interests Anti-Federalists become known as democratic- republicans Led by Thomas Jefferson Resigned from his position of Secretary of State to lead the party Strict Constructionists Wanted a smaller national government Favored the “common-man” Farmers, laborers, shopkeepers, planters

The Third Parties 4 Distinct types of minor parties: Ideological Parties Based on a particular set of beliefs Libertarian, Socialist, Communist Parties Don’t get many votes, but are long-lived Single-Issue Parties Focus on one issue Right to Life Party Fade away as times change and major parties take up their cause

The Third Parties Economic Protest Parties Splinter Parties Focus on economic discontent Greenback Party Enemies are “Wall Street bankers”, monetary system Splinter Parties Break off from one of the major parties “Bull Moose” and “Dixiecrat” Parties Formed around a strong personality Theodore Roosevelt Fade away when the leader steps aside

The Role of Third Parties Introduce useful innovations in American politics Bring about change by getting issues known Policies of a third-party often become planks in mainstream party platforms Spoiler Role: a strong candidate will take votes away from one of the major party candidates Ex: Ross Perot Serve as critics and reformers in American political life Issues such as suffrage, railroad regulation Major parties adopt the ideas of minor parties when they begin to gain popular support

Role of the Presidency President’s party is more solidly united and more cohesive President automatically becomes the leader of the party when elected Party out of power does not have a comparable leader

Role of the Nominating Process What are parties trying to do? Win elections In the nomination process, they are trying to find the candidate with the best chance of winning the election and becoming the officeholder Does this process divide the party? Yes, it does and then they try to come back together

The Future of Major Parties Major parties are in a state of decline because: Voters identify themselves as independents Big increase in split-ticket voting Voting for candidates of different parties for different offices on the same ballot