1. Political Party History
How did our current political situation arise?

2. What are the roles and functions of political parties?
Brainstorm 3 benefits and 3 detriments to having political parties.

3. Roles in Modern Day
Mobilize support and gather power-operate the government/ provide opposition to government in office
Force for stability, Unity, and moderation- provide sense of unity
Linkage, and Accountability- inform public, act as link between governed and government
Electioneering- nominate candidates
Party as a voting and issue cue- clarify political issues
Policy Formation and Promotion

4. Party Decline
Between 1960 and 1980, the proportion of people who identified completely with one party of the other, began to decline significantly.
The number of people who voted a split ticket (as opposed to a straight ticket) increased simultaneously.
What reasons could there be for this shift?

5. Parties are more extreme during primaries, less during general elections…
A platform is a statement of a party's positions on issues and policies it intends to pursue. Each individual issue is called a plank.
Both parties want votes. As a result, parties become more moderate in their platforms, moving away from extreme positions during general elections.

6. National Party Structure
Just as we have a federal system of government, a similar system exists for the parties.
At each level, a separate and almost entirely independent organization exists.
On paper, the two parties have similar structure.

7. Democrats and Republicans
Both parties have a National Convention which meets every 4 years to nominate a presidential candidate.
Parties choose members of convention differently, with Reps rewarding loyalty, Demss rewarding state size.
Between conventions, party affairs are managed by a national committee, made up of delegates from each state.(RNC, DNC)
In Congress, each party has a congressional campaign committee that helps members running for re-election or would-be members who are challenging a seat.

8. Both Parties have full-time National Chairmen
Reince Priebus (RNC)
Tim Kaine (DNC)

9. Structure of Parties Republican Democrats
Well-financed, highly staffed devoted to finding and electing Rep candidates
Strategy began in
Well-structured bureaucracy/ top-down leadership
Democrats
Factionalized
Began to restructure to create more efficient party in 1980’s
Led to greater national achievement in 1990’s

10. History of Parties
How has history impacted the ideological development and sources of support for the two parties?
In pairs, examine the histories of the two major parties and analyze the impact history has had on both.

11. Party Systems in other Countries
Most democracies have multi-party systems. (US in minority with 2-party system)
In other countries, one party rarely wins the number of seats in the Parliament needed to control the government. This instability forces several parties to cooperate in running the government. When parties work together to pass laws, a coalition is formed.
If a small party pulls its support, the government can collapse and new elections must be held. This process occurs in nations with a parliamentary system of government.
The US has a presidential system and a Congress rather than a prime minister and a parliament, so we don’t have coalitions-sometimes we have bi-partisanship, BUT NOT LATELY.

12. Following The Party Line
A one-party system cannot exist in a democracy. There is no choice of candidates in the elections.
Opposition parties are usually banned.
Communist China, Cuba, and North Korea operate under one-party systems. One-party systems may be based on other ideologies, such as religion, like in Iran.
Communist Party Congress, China
In a one-party system, the government and party are synonymous.

13. How has history impacted the parties?