Political Parties

Political Parties

“A party of order or stability, and a party of progress or reform, are both necessary elements of a healthy state of political life.” • John Stuart Mill (1859) British Philosopher

Where do you think you fall on the political spectrum? • Why? How can you tell? • Let's find out how you score...

Parties and What They Do “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.” • Vince Lombardi • This can be said for the attitudes of the Democratic and Republican parties • Competing and Winning are two main goals of political parties

Political Party – a group of people who seek to control government through the winning of elections and the holding of public office • The two Major Parties in the U.S. are: • Republican • Democratic

Political parties are essential to democratic government • They are the medium through which options are presented to the people • Serve as a link between the people and their government • Some argue they are the principle means by which the will of the people is made known to government

5 Major Functions • Nominating Candidates for public office • THE major function • Select candidate and present them to the voters • Work to help their candidate win elections • Best tool for finding candidates and gathering support • Sets political parties apart from other groups in politics

Informing and Activating Supporters • Activate interest and participation in public affairs • Primarily by: • Campaigning for their candidates • Taking stands on issues • Criticizing the candidates/positions of their opponents • Inform voters the way THEY want them to be informed • Advertising

Act as a Bonding Agent • Ensures the good performance of its candidates and officeholders • Tries to make sure they are men and women who are both qualified and of good character • Prompts its successful candidates to perform well in office • If they fail to do so, both party and candidate may suffer the consequences in future elections

Governing • Public officeholders are regularly chosen on the basis of party • Congress and State legislatures are organized on party lines • Partisanship – government action based on firm allegiance to a political party • Legislative and Executive branches must cooperate in order to accomplish anything: • Political Parties provide the channel for these branches to work together

Watchdog • The party NOT in power closely watches the actions of the party in power* * Party that controls the executive branch of government; i.e., the Presidency at the national level, or the governorship at the State level • Party out of power tries to convince the voters that they should be the ones making the decisions • Often makes those in power more responsive to the wishes and concerns of the people

The Two-Party System • Two’s company, but three’s a crowd!

The two major political parties dominate American politics & • The minor parties* do not have nearly as much power and influence as the major parties • *political parties without widespread support • Examples of minor parties include: Libertarian Party, Communist Party USA, Green Party of the United States

Historical Basis • U.S. has historically always been a two-party system • Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists after the ratification of the Constitution • Federalists vs. Democratic-Republicans formed at the beginning of John Adam’s presidency (Federalist) • Set the model for the Democrats vs. Republicans we know today

The Force of Tradition • Human institutions often become self-perpetuating • The fact that the nation began with a two-party system is a leading factor for the retention of it • Most Americans accept the idea of a two-party system simply because there has always been one. • Can explain why challenges from minor parties have made very little headway

The Electoral System • Features of the American electoral system promote the existence of two major parties • Single-member districts – elections are contests in which only one candidate is elected to each office on the ballot • Discourages minor parties • Voters often see votes for a minor party as a wasted vote because of the influence of &

Much of American election law is purposely written to discourage non-major party candidates • Nearly all election law in this country is State law • Almost all of the 7,600+ State legislators are either or • The two major parties deliberately shape election laws to preserve, protect, and defend the system in a bipartisan* way * Bipartisan – two major parties find a common ground on an issue

Both major parties are generally alike • Both tend to be moderate • Both are build on compromise • Regularly seek to occupy the “middle of the road” • Seek the same prize: the votes of a majority of the electorate • To do so, they both must win over essentially the same people • Take policy positions that do not differ from one another • But they do have their differences…

Much more likely to: • Favor the play of private market forces in the economy • Argue that the Federal Government should be less extensively involved in social welfare programs

More likely to support: • Social welfare programs • Government regulation of business practices • Efforts to improve the status of minorities

One-Party Aspects of the U.S. • Effective two-party competition has spread rapidly in the past 40 years or so • Until the 1950s: • dominated the South • had controlled much of New England and Mid-West • Now: • win offices in every Northern state • are heavily influential in the South

About 1/3 of the States can be said to have a one-party system* * One of the major parties regularly wins most elections in those states

Party Membership Patterns • Each of the major parties ( & ) have always been composed of a cross-section of the population • However, some segments generally tend to align themselves with one or the other • : white males, Protestants, and business community, historically higher income • : African Americans, Catholics and Jews, Union Members, historically lower income

Minor Parties in the U.S. • Sometimes difficult to describe and classify because of their number and variety • Some limit their efforts to small geographic regions, while others try to influence the nation • Most are short-lived, but a few have existed for decades • There are four distinct types of interest groups

Ideological Parties • Based on a particular set of beliefs • Social, economic, and political matters • Built around some variety of Marxist thought • ex: Socialist, Socialist Labor, Socialist Worker, Communist parties • Emphasize individualism • Call for doing away with most of government’s present functions and programs • ex: Libertarian Party • Rarely are able to win any votes

Single-Issue Parties • Concentrate on only one public-policy matter • Names usually indicate their primary concern • ex: “Know Nothing” Party, Right to Life Party • Do not stick around very long: • Die away as events pass by • Themes often fail to attract voters • One or both major parties take their key issues as their own

Economic Protest Parties • Rooted in periods of economic discontent • Proclaim their disgust with the major parties and demand better times • Focus their anger on such real or imagined enemies as: • The monetary system • “Wall Street bankers” • Railroads • Foreign Imports • Draw their strength mostly from the agricultural South & West • Tend to fall away as the nation climbs out of the difficult economic period in which that party arose

Splinter Parties • Parties that have split away from one of the major parties • Most of the more important minor parties in our politics have been splinter parties • Most splinter parties are formed around a strong personality • Most often around someone who has failed to win his/her major party’s nomination • These parties most often fade or collapse when the leader steps aside

Political Parties