1. Political Parties: Roles & History
Parties and What They Do
Political parties – a group of persons who seek to control government through the winning of elections and holding of public offices.
Major US political parties – Democrats and Republicans
Partisanship – firm allegiance to a political party.

2. Political Parties: Roles & History
What Political Parties Do
Nominate Candidates – political parties find and gather support for candidates
Inform and Activate Supporters – (also news media and interest groups) political parties try to inform voters about issues and where their candidate stands on them. (ex. Bumper stickers, commercials, ads)
The Bonding Agent Function – ensures good candidates by seeing they are qualified and of good character
Governing – allegiance to political parties is often the basis for political action
Acting as a Watchdog – the party out of power keeps the party in power on their toes

3. Political Parties: Roles & History
The 2 Party System in US History
First Parties
Federalists – led by Alexander Hamilton, generally rich and well born and had supported the Constitution.
Anti-Federalists (Democratic-Republicans) – led by Thomas Jefferson, represented the Common man
Four Major Eras of American Political Parties
Era of the Democrats
Anti-Federalists – became Democratic-Republicans – became Democrats
Starting with Thomas Jefferson up until the Civil War
Factions – conflicting groups
Whigs were the other major party – only elected two presidents

4. Political Parties: Roles & History
Era of the Republicans
Party founded in 1854 by Whigs and anti-slavery Democrats
Only party in history to go from a third party to a major party
In power from the Civil War up until the Great Depression
Sectionalism – devotion to the interests of a particular region
The Return of the Democrats
FDR brought the Democrats back to power with the New Deal he made to help the nation come out of the Great Depression
Emphasized social spending & increasing government’s role in everyday life
He was elected to 4 terms

5. Political Parties: Roles & History
Start of a New Era
Neither party has dominated from 1968 up until now
Economic and social conditions as well as scandals have prevented either party from maintaining power.
Minor Parties in the United States:
Ideological parties – parties based on a particular set of beliefs – a comprehensive view of social, economic and political matters. (ex. Socialist, Communists)
Single-issue parties – parties that are based on one public policy matter. (ex. Right to Life)

6. Political Parties: Roles & History
Economic protest parties - parties formed in bad economic times to demand improvement and focus their anger on certain groups. (e.g. Greenback party)
Splinter parties – parties that have split away from one of the major parties, usually in support of a specific personality. (e.g. Bull Moose Progressive Party of 1912)
Why Minor Parties Are Important
A minor party (the American Masons) were the first to use a national convention to nominate someone
A strong third – party candidate can play the spoiler role by pulling votes from a major party and influencing the election.
Bring attention to issues that major parties try to avoid or straddle.

7. Political Parties: Roles & History
Party Organization
The two major parties are decentralized
The President’s party (the party in power) is usually more organized
The President acts as the party leader by:
Using media access
Popularity
Dispensing favors
Appointments to positions
Federalism makes party organization more decentralized

8. Political Parties: Roles & History
The federal system spreads power to state and local levels, therefore the party also has to spread its power
The process of choosing a candidate can cause divisions

9. Political Parties: Roles & History
National Party Machinery
The National Convention
The National Committee
The National Chairperson
Congressional Campaign Committee
Three Components of the Party
1. Party organization – the leaders, activist etc who run the party
2. The party in the electorate – the party’s loyalists who vote the straight party ticket
3. The party in government – party’s officeholders

10. Political Parties: Roles & History
The Weakness of the Major Parties
1. A sharp drop in voters willing to identify themselves as Republicans or Democrats
2. Increase in split-ticket voting – voting for candidates of different parties for different offices at the same election
3. Structural changes that have made the parties more open.
4. Changing technology
5. Growth of single issue organizations such as PACs

11. Gerrymandering/Redistricting

12. Gerrymandering/Redistricting Congress
 What is gerrymandering? 
Gerrymandering is a term that describes the deliberate rearrangement of the boundaries of congressional districts to influence the outcome of elections.

13. Gerrymandering/Redistricting Congress
Where did gerrymandering come from?
The original gerrymander was created in 1812 by Massachusetts’s governor Elbridge Gerry, who crafted a district for political purposes that looked like a salamander.   

14. Gerrymandering/Redistricting Congress
What is the purpose of gerrymandering?
The purpose of gerrymandering is to either concentrate opposition votes into a few districts to gain more seats for the majority in surrounding districts (called packing), or to diffuse minority strength across many districts (called dilution).

15. Gerrymandering/Redistricting Congress
How has Congress regulated redistricting?
In 1967, Congress passed a law requiring all U.S. representatives to be elected from single member districts—the system we use today. All other redistricting regulations come from the states or the courts.