1. CHAPTER 12
Political Parties

2. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF POLITICAL PARTIES?
Political Party
an organization that seeks political power by electing people to office so that its positions and philosophy become public policy
win elections
operate the government
determine policy

3. FUNCTIONS OF POLITCAL PARTIES
Label
Party Identification
psychological attachment
information shortcut
Organize campaigns
nominate and elect candidates
fund Raising and voter education
mobilize voters
“Running” the government
organize government
agenda
provide loyal opposition

4. COMPARISON WITH EUROPEAN PARTIES
Multiparty systems
proportional representation
multi-member districts
coalitions
Party centralism
Example: French National Assembly

5. WHY ARE AMERICAN PARTIES DIFFERENT?
state and federal regulation
caucus and primary systems
separate presidential election
two party system
winner-take-all and plurality system
party decentralization
party fragmentation
federal system

6. WHY THE TWO-PARTY SYSTEM?
Duverger’s Law
single-member districts + plurality voting
plurality system
discourages third parties
forces broadly-based parties
winner-take all system
congressional districts
electoral college
“wasted” third party votes
opinions of voters
Republican vs. Democratic political ideology

7. HISTORY OF AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES
1st Party system ( )
Founding Fathers’ generation
emergence of Republicans and Federalists

8. HISTORY OF AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES
2nd Party System ( )
Republicans, Democrats, Whigs
transition toward mass democracy
grassroots organization
national conventions

9. HISTORY OF AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES
3rd Party System (1860-present)
2nd party system destroyed by slavery
New Republican domination ( )
factionalized
Stalwarts (“traditional” Republicans)
Mugwumps (progressives)

10. HISTORY OF AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES
3rd Party System (1860-present)
era of reform
primary elections
nonpartisan elections
patronage
civil service reform
strict voter registration requirements
initiatives
referendum elections

11. HISTORY OF AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES
Democratic domination ( )
New Deal coalition
unified government
Divided government (1968-present)
divided government
Nixon, Reagan, Clinton
split ticket voting
2000-present
unified and divided government
New GOP dominance? New Democratic dominance?

12. THE MAJOR PARTIES Republican National Committee (RNC)
Democratic National Committee (DNC)
Similarities
national conventions to nominate presidential candidates
national committees composed of state delegates
congressional campaign committees
national chair manages daily work

13. THE MAJOR PARTIES: FUNDARAISING
Party strategies:
Party strategies diverged in the late 1960’s:
RNC
use computerized direct mail campaigns to raise money
hired political consulting firms
DNC
adopted RNC techniques in the late 1980’s
Obama campaign (2008, 2012)

14. THE MAJOR PARTIES: FUNDRAISING
hard money
soft money
527 groups (SuperPACs)
BCRA (McCain-Feingold, 2002)
tried to limit soft money
micro-targeting

15. NATIONAL CONVENTIONS delegate formulas purposes: create party platform
choose a presidential candidate
delegate formulas
Democratic shift to North and West
Republican shift to South and Southwest
Democrats reward large states
Republicans reward loyal states

16. NATIONAL CONVENTIONS 1972 Democratic Party reforms (McGovern)
Democratic Reforms
1972 Democratic Party reforms (McGovern)
weaken local party leaders
increase influence of special interests
1984 Hunt Commission
increased influence of elected and former officials
super delegates

17. STATE AND LOCAL PARTIES
RNC and DNC state organizations
central state committee
Political machines
old version
recruits members/support for patronage
modern version
money
special interests

18. STATE AND LOCAL PARTIES
Solidary groups
most common form of party
members motivated by solidary incentives
social interaction
love of the game
being “in the know”
Sponsored parties
Personal following groups

19. MINOR PARTIES Ideological parties One-issue parties
Socialist Party
One-issue parties
Free Soil Party
Economic protest parties
Populist Party
Factional parties
Dixiecrat

20. BIG PARTY TRENDS decline of national parties
influence on state and local issues
American voters in general
grassroots activists growing in power
Tea Party
polarization of party influences into regions
Red states v. Blue states

21. AMERICAN PARTIES IN DECLINE
Parties realigning or decaying? Why?
changes in state voting procedures
party ballot vs. Australian ballot
split ticket vs. straight ticket voting

22. ELECTIONS AND CAMPAIGNS
CHAPTER 13
ELECTIONS AND CAMPAIGNS

23. CHANGES IN MODERN ELECTION CAMPAIGNS
decline of party influence
political technology firms
direct mail/internet firms
polling firms
media consultants
the impact of money
the impact of polling

24. PRESIDENTIAL VS. CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGNS
impact of presidential coattails has declined
congressional candidates can duck responsibility
differing constituencies
fewer people vote in congressional elections
presidential campaigns are more competitive

25. RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT creating “buzz” create time to run
background may matter
organization
money
individuals
PACs
federal matching funds

26. RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT judging the timing of the campaign
strategy and themes
incumbent vs. challenger
inside or outside Washington
establishment vs. insurgent
positive or negative tone
Reagan example
judging the timing of the campaign
win early and often
choosing voters to target

27. NOMINATING PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
Contradictory party forces:
selecting a candidate who can win a general election
selecting a candidate who can satisfy factions and ideology of the party

28. RUNNING FOR CONGRESS malapportionment and gerrymandering
Wesberry v Sanders (1964)
4th Congressional District, Illinois
Georgia
winning the primary
ballot procedures
develop personal following
incumbent advantage

29. RUNNING FOR CONGRESS sophomore surge influence of localism
franking privileges
trips home
television and radio adds
casework and pork barrel
run for Congress by running against it
influence of localism
decline of party leadership control over members

30. TYPES OF PRIMARIES Caucus Open primary Closed primary Blanket primary
Run-off primary
Current Map
Date of Primary
Front Loading
Issues
growing importance of primaries
party delegates vs. party rank-and-file/average voter

31. PRIMARY VS. GENERAL ELECTIONS
primaries/caucuses
targeting political activists
activists are more ideologically extreme
balancing act for candidate who will return for general election

32. IMPACT OF MEDIA Television paid advertising (spots)
Johnson vs. Goldwater (1964)
Bush vs. Dukakis (1988)
subtle (if any) impact on election outcome
most voters rely on multiple sources of information
news coverage of candidacy (a visual)
vital to a campaign
paradox of spots vs. visuals

33. IMPACT OF MEDIA Televised Debates
usually work to the advantage of the challenger
the impact hard to determine
debates can hurt more than help a candidate
sound-bites
Reagan-Mondale debate
Bush watch check
Gore’s alpha male moment
slogans/sell candidate more than ideas
1996—networks agree to provide free time for major party candidates
FCC allowed the exclusion of “minor” parties

34. INTERNET AND SOCIAL MEDIA
growing in importance as campaigns learn how to use the new medium
sophisticated direct-mail campaigns
micro-targeting
acquisition and maintenance of “mailing” lists
impact
consultant-driven, poll-driven campaigns

35. MONEY AND CAMPAIGNS Sources of Campaign Money
congressional candidates—private citizens and interest groups
political actions committees (PACs)
political parties
most from small donors
presidential candidates
primaries—private citizens and interest groups
general election—private and public funding
federal matching funds

36. CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS Federal Election Campaign Act (1973) (FECA)
individual donor limits ($1000) per election
ban on corporate and union donations directly to campaigns
limits on PACs ($5000 per candidate)
Federal Election Commission (1975)
created to enforce FECA
disclose campaign finance information
oversee the public funding of Presidential elections

37. CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS Impact of law:
increased expanse of elections
creates new monetary incentives
independent expenditures
“soft money”
increase influence of PACs and SuperPACs
further weakened the political parties
opened the door to self-financed campaigns
increased advantage of incumbents

38. CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS Buckley v Valeo (1976)
expenditures on behalf of candidates that are independent of the campaign cannot be regulated
free speech issue
BCRA (McCain-Feingold, 2002)
bans soft-money contributions to parties from labor unions and corporations

39. CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS SuperPACs (527 groups)
can raise unlimited funds from any source and spend it to advance “political causes”
unlimited expenditures allowed as long as there is not direct coordination with candidate or his/her campaign
Swift Boat Veterans for Truth (2004)

40. CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS McCutcheon v FEC (2014)
Citizens United v. FEC (2010)
struck down restrictions on independent corporate and labor spending on party and independent campaigns
McCutcheon v FEC (2014)
struck down aggregate limits that an individual can contribute to candidates and political committees
upheld individual contribution limit to a specific campaign ($2600)

41. MONEY AND WINNING Presidential elections: party affiliation
state of the economy (“it’s the economy, stupid”)
character of the candidates
money is very important in presidential primaries
tends to be less determinant in general election

42. MONEY AND WINNING Congressional elections money far more determinant
challenger name recognition
big spending challengers do better
high-spending incumbents do better
big advantage for incumbents:
easier to raise money
can provide benefits/services to constituents
franking privileges
free publicity through legislation

43. HOW VOTERS DECIDE Party Loyalty
party affiliation matters more than the candidate
how much do voters know about the issues?
why don’t the Democrats win all elections then?
Democrats are less wedded to their party
higher percentages of Republicans vote than Democrats

44. HOW VOTERS DECIDE Issues V.O. Key
most voters who switch parties from one election to the next do so on their own interests
voter incentives vital
depends on issue intensity

45. HOW VOTERS DECIDE prospective voting retrospective voting
voting for a candidate because you favor his/her ideas for handling issues
VS.
retrospective voting
voting for a candidate because you approve of his/her performance in previous office

46. HOW VOTERS DECIDE position issue
issue about which the public is divided and rival candidates and/or parties adopt different policy positions
VS.
valence issues
issue about which the public is united and rival candidates and/or parties adopt similar positions
“pocketbook” issues
which party/candidate will handle these issues best?
clothespin vote

47. PARTY COALITIONS
what identifiable groups in the population supported what party and to what degree?
how loyal is this group to a party?
Democratic coalition
African Americans are most loyal
Jewish support appears to be on the wane
Hispanics-depends on ancestry and region of the US
Catholics, southerners, union members have increasingly tended to swing
largest proportion, but least dependable

48. PARTY COALITIONS Republican coalition
party of business and professionals
elderly, retired voters
rural, social conservatives

49. PARTY REALIGNMENTS realignment
V.O. Key, A Theory of Critical Elections
sharp, lasting shift in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties
realignment
a shift in the coalitions that make up the major political parties
moves the minority party to the majority and vice versa on all levels of government
1800, 1828, 1860, 1896, 1932

50. PARTY REALIGNMENTS dealignment critical election
shift from party affiliation to independent status
divided government
critical election
elections that begin a realignment or dealignment
hard to see them happening until years later

51. PARTY REALIGNMENTS deviating election maintaining election
an election that diverges from recent trends but does not represent a long-term shift
1948, 1994, 2006
maintaining election
continuance of the prevailing voting patterns

52. WHY DO ELECTIONS MATTER?
what they imply about the attitude of voters?
what do results say about the operation of the electoral system?
what do the results say about the fate of the political parties?
how do election results influence the direction of public policy?

53. WHY DO ELECTIONS MATTER?
evidence indicates the many elections do make a big difference in policy
1932—New Deal coalition
1964—Great Society based on huge Democratic majorities
1980—Reagan Revolution
2008—Obamacare