Political spectrum, Political Parties and the electoral college

1. Political spectrum, Political Parties and the electoral college

2. Left v Right • Idea comes from the French Revolution • Those that wanted to maintain the monarchy sat on the right side of the room • Those that wanted to abolish the monarchy sat on the left side.

6. Terms to know • Political party- a group of people who seek to control government through the winning of elections and holding of public office • Two party system- a political system dominated by two major political parties • (there’s another slide of terms)

7. More terms (last one) • Multi-party system- a system where many parties exist and seriously compete for public offices • Electorate- people entitled to vote in an election • Popular vote- the vote of the people • Electoral vote- votes cast by electors in the electoral college

8. Role of political parties • To inform people about party beliefs and platform • To keep people in line within their beliefs “watchdog” • To nominate leaders • To stimulate discussion

9. The Two Party System • Democrats • Republicans • Does anyone else really have a shot of winning? • That’s a two party system. When only two parties have a realistic chance of winning.

10. 3rd Parties in American History • Whig Party- arose from the authoritarian polices of Andrew Jackson. Died soon after its creators Henry Clay and Daniel Webster died. • Socialist party (various forms)- ran Eugene Debs for President 5 times, once from prison. Opposed to war and free market capitalism. Still around) • Bull moose- Created by Teddy Roosevelt to run for a third term. (defunct) • Reform- The creation of businessmen and rightwing activists such as Ross Perot and Pat Buchanan. Still around • Green Party- ran Ralph Nader for President until this 2008, when Cynthia McKinney defeated him at the convention. Focus on anti-war and pro environmental issues. • Libertarian party- since 1971 a collection of varying political views ranging from the far left to the far right. Stresses outlaw of “victimless crimes” and useless taxes. • Constitution Party- A conservative Party plans to run several candidates in the 2010 midterm elections

11. Results of recent American Elections 1960-2004 Winner Defeated Candidate 1960- Richard Nixon 1964 –Barry Goldwater 1968 –Hubert Humphrey 1972 – George McGovern 1976 – Pres. Gerald Ford 1980 – Pres. Jimmy Carter 1984-Walter Mondale 1988 –Michael Dukakis 1992- Pres. George HW Bush 1996- Bob Dole 2000- Al Gore 2004 - John Kerry • 1960- JFK • 1964 – Lyndon Johnson • 1968- Richard Nixon • 1972 – Richard Nixon • 1976- Jimmy Carter • 1980- Ronald Reagan • 1984 –Ronald Reagan • 1988 – George HW Bush • 1992- Bill Clinton • 1996 -Bill Clinton • 2000 – George W. Bush • 2004 –George W. Bush

12. How is the President picked? • A person decides to run for president. • They are nominated by their party after a long primary process (Think elimination round here) • On election day (First Tuesday, after the first Monday in November) the people vote • A set of Presidential electors looks at the popular vote and awards that state’s electoral votes to the candidate who has the most votes

13. 2000 Popular vote totals Gore Bush 50,459,211 • 51,003,894

14. Why do we have the electoral college? • In the beginning of our country most people worked on farms far away from town. • People could not leave to vote • People could not be trusted to know how to read • know what the issues were. Be an “informed electorate”