Political Parties

1. Political Parties Kelly Walker US Government

2. Assignment • Go to: http://www.learner.org/courses/democracyinamerica/dia_12/ • Click on the readings tab Read the Introduction—Political Parties: Mobilizing Agents and answer this question: What are mobilizing agents and how do they link citizens to government participation?

3. Objectives • Understand the origins of political parties in the United States • Identify and describe the three major periods of single-party domination and describe the current era of divided government. • Understand the role of political parties in the US system of government

4. What is a Party? • Political Party: a group of persons, joined together on the basis of common principles, who seek to control government through the winning of elections and the holding of political office • Democrats and Republicans

5. What Do Parties Do? • Essential to democratic Government • Political Efficacy: Citizens faith and trust in government and their own belief that they can understand and influence political affairs • Behind the development of broad policy and leadership choices • “Power Brokers”: Bring conflicting groups together- compromise • Structure the Voting Choice

6. Functions • Nominating Candidates • Informing and Activating Supporters (news media/interest groups) • Bonding Agent: Ensure their candidates are qualified/good character • Governing: Partisanship: government action based on firm allegiance to a political party and its policies • Acting as a Watchdog

7. Party Realignments • Periods when a major, lasting shift occurs in the make-up of political parties. Two Major Types of Realignments 1. Party actually dies • Voters shift support from one party to another (economics or issue driven) There have been at least five in American history 1800- end of the Federalists 1828- Jackson Democrats came to power 1860- Whigs collapsed- Republicans came to power 1896- Republicans defeated Bryan 1932- Democrats under Roosevelt

8. The Nation’s First Parties- Started from the conflict over ratification of the Constitution: The Pre-party Period • Federalists- 1st political party. 1. Leader- Alexander Hamilton 2. Most Federalists were “the rich and the well-born.” 3. Beliefs a. A strong executive b. Policies to correct the nation’s economic ills. c. Loose interpretation of the Constitution 4. Supporters • financial interests • Manufacturing • commercial interests

9. B. Democratic-Republicans • Leader- Thomas Jefferson • More concerned with the “common man.” • Beliefs • Congress should dominate the new government • Limited role of the new government • Strict interpretation of the Constitution. • Supporters • small shopkeepers • Laborers • farmers

10. C. Election of 1796 http://www.270towin.com/ • First election with a Federalist against a Democratic-Republican • John Adams (Federalist) defeated Thomas Jefferson (D-R) by 3 electoral votes.

11. First Party System: Realignment of 1800 • Thomas Jefferson elected president • Jeffersonian Democrats replace the Federalists as the majority party • Policy change from a strong national government, centralized power, and government policies designed to benefit business to ... • Policies predicated on a rural country, small farmers, less government, more equality • Federalists Ceased being a viable electoral party • This "party system" ends in early 1820s with virtual one party rule --- the "era of good feelings"

12. II. The Era of the Democrats, 1800-1860 • Era of Good Feeling- Democrat-Republicans face no opposition from 1816-1824 • Factions develop after 1824 • Whig party develops after 1828 election

13. D. Democrats 1828 • Leader- Andrew Jackson • Supporters mostly from the south and west a. small farmers b. debtors c. frontier pioneers d. slave holders

14. 3. Fundamental changes made under Democrats • voting rights for all males • spread of the spoils system • a huge increase in the number of elected offices around the country

15. E. Whig Party • Leaders: Henry Clay, Daniel Webster • Supporters a. Eastern bankers b. merchants and industrialists c. large southern plantation owners F. Era ends over theissue of slavery • Whigs collapse (Clay and Webster die) • Democrats split into 2 sharply divided groups, North and South. G. Republican party develops • Whigs and antislavery Democrats. • Starts in 1854.

16. III. The Era of the Republicans, Realingment of 1860-1932 • The Civil War brings the beginning of the second era of one-party domination. • Republicans 1. Lincoln was the first Republican president. 2. Republican Supporters • Business and financial interests • Farmers • Laborers • Newly freed African Americans C. Democrats • Crippled by the Civil War • Maintain control in the “Solid South.”

17. D. Election of 1896 • William McKinley- Republican a. Favored the Gold Standard b. Supported big business, monopolies and the railroads. 2. William Jennings Bryan - Democrat a. Favored free silver b. Supported by farmers and newly emerging unions

18. Return of the Democrats1932-1968 A. Depression brings about a shift in the perception of the role of government in society and return Democrats to power • Franklin D. Roosevelt- Strong Social Welfare programs • Democrat Supporters a. Southerners b. Small Farmers c. Organized labor d. Big-City political organizations

19. Realignment of 1932 • Brought on by the Great Depression • GOP President Herbert Hoover very unpopular • 1. conservative • 2. considered aloof • 3. believes in riding out the storm • Democrats rally around FDR • 1. promises at first to do something -- compassionate • 2. later adopts a liberal, activist agenda • Democrats sweep into power nationally in 1932 elections, filters down to state elections over next several decades

20. Coalition Crackup Question --- is New Deal realignment still operative? • Coalition undermined by defection of Solid South over racial matters • beginning in 1948, white southerners began to vote for Republicans (or Independents) at presidential level • Labor and many northern poor have defected to GOP on occasion over economic and crime issues- Reagan Democrats • Some Catholics have defected over abortion • Obviously, coalition is not as strong as it once was

21. Divided Government • Nixon (R) won in 1968 (left in 1972 over Watergate) • Ford (R) could not beat Jimmy Carter (D) in 1976 • Carter hindered by Iranian hostage crisis and loses to Ronald Reagan (R) • Reagan retires and George H. Bush (R) becomes president • Clinton (D) defeats Bush in 1992 • Clinton retires and George W. Bush (R) becomes president in very close elections with Gore and Kerry • Democrats take back the White House and Congress in the 2008, election – Democrats hold the White House and the Senate in 2012.

22. Why a Two Party System? • Historical: Founding Fathers, “agents of divisiveness and disunity” • Force of Tradition: Began with a two-party system, has always been a two-party system • The Electoral System: Single Member District- winner take all; only one can win or plurality- the largest number of votes wins. Both parties Shape election laws to protect the two-party system • American Ideological Consensus(general agreement): All Americans share the same ideals, principles and patterns of belief

23. Both Parties… • Are moderate (“Big Tent” Ideology) • Try to attract as many voters as possible • Are built on compromise and try to occupy the middle of the road • Take policy positions that do not differ a great deal from those of the other major party

24. Party Decay? • Proportion of people who identify with a party on the decline since 1960. • Split ticket voting increase • Electoral Dealignment? A lessening of party loyalties in voting decisions

25. Party Ideology • Liberal: advocates change, new philosophies, new ideas (Left, Democrats) • Conservative: Avoids change, status quo or return to earlier times (Right, Republicans)

26. LIBERALS • Usually embrace freedom of choice in personal matters • Support significant government control of the economy and advocate regulation of business • Favor environmental regulations • Defend civil liberties and free expression • Support government action to promote equality, and tolerate diverse lifestyles.

27. Conservatives • Tend to favor economic freedom and a free-market economy • Frequently support laws to restrict personal behavior that violates traditional values • Oppose excessive government control of business • Endorses government action to defend morality and the traditional family structure • Support a strong military • Oppose bureaucracy and high taxes, • Endorse strong law enforcement

28. Are you Liberal or Conservative? • Balanced Politics • Quiz • Political Spectrum: • Communism ---- Social Democracy ----- Liberalism ----- Centrism ----- Conservatism ----- Reactionism ----- Fascism • http://www.gallup.com/poll/151943/record-high-americans-identify-independents.aspx

29. Multiparty Systems • Several major and many minor parties control government • Based on economic class, interest, religious belief, or political ideology • Broader representation of the electorate • Greater choice • Coalitions: temporary alliance of several groups who come together to form a working majority and control the government • Europe, other mature democracies

30. One Party Systems • Dictatorships (China, Cuba) • Party of the ruling group/person • Many states always vote either for Democrats or Republicans

31. Democrats: http://www.democrats.org/ African Americans Catholics Jews Union Members Latinos Other minorities Professionals Farmers Educated Women Republicans: http://www.rnc.org/ White Males Protestants Business Community Party Membership Patterns

32. Party Membership Patterns People identify with a party: • Family • Events (War, Depression) • Economic Status (Higher: Republican, lower: Democrats) • Age • Place of Residence • Level of Education • Work Environment

33. Minor Parties • Difficult to describe and classify • Usually based on one idea or issue • Short-Lived • Have no shot of electing a president to office

34. Minor Parties Four Types: • Ideological Parties: Based on a particular set of beliefs (Marxist’s and Libertarian) • Single-Issue Party: Focus on one public-policy matter (Right to Life Party) • Economic Protest Parties: Rooted in periods of economic turmoil (Greenback’s) • Splinter Parties: Split away from the major parties (Bull Moose)

35. Why Minor Parties are Important • First used a national convention to recruit presidential candidates (1831) • Spoiler Role • Critic and innovator of major parties- take stands on controversial issues (progressive income tax: Larger % from higher income, lower % from lower income. Gun control, women’s suffrage, old-age pensions)

36. Minor Parties • Reform Party: Ross Perot • Libertarian Party • Natural Law • Constitution • Socialist • Prohibition • Green • http://www.americafirstparty.org/ • http://www.gp.org/index.php

37. Social Movements • What is a social movement? • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_movement • The Tea Party • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_Party_movement • Occupy Wall Street • http://occupywallst.org/

38. Party Organization • Decentralized, Fragmented, Disjointed • Full of factions • Internal squabbling • No chain of command from National to State to Local level • Local units independent of State units • http://www.c-spanclassroom.org/VideoDetail.aspx?video_id=423

39. Party Organization • The Role of the Presidency: Party more cohesive and organized. President is party leader- minor party leaderless/powerless • Impact of Federalism: Government is decentralized, so are parties • Nominating Process: candidate selection is an intraparty process and the process is divisive. Members within each party fight for nomination, fragments the party. • http://c-spanclassroom.org/VideoDetail.aspx?Video_ID=426

40. Political Parties 3 components: • Party Organization: Decides leaders • Party in the electorate: Those who vote the straight party ticket • Party in Government: Office holders Weakened state of the party: • Sharp drop in loyal party voters • Increase in split-ticket voting • Reform: Parties more open, more fragmented • Use of the Media • Growth of single-issue organizations

41. Any Final Questions?