Political Parties

Political Parties Chapter 9

Parties—Here and Abroad • A political party is a group that attempts to control/change government by getting people elected to office that align with their views • Americans are less involved with political parties than they once were, and are much less involved with parties than other nations like France, Italy, or Sweden • Americans used to be heavily committed to their party—something they would not easily abandon

Parties—Here and Abroad • Parties have three major functions • As a label • As a campaigning tool for candidates • As a set of leaders who attempt to control the legislative/executive branches • The strong party will be able to appeal to people as a label, dictate who will be its candidates and how the campaigns will be run and will control at least one of the branches

Parties—Here and Abroad • Look at the chart • What does it tell you about party identification since 1988? • Why are more people moving to “independent” versus the other two parties? • Even those who identify themselves as “Republican” or “Democrat” often become split-ticket voters meaning they will choose one party for one office and choose another party for a different office

Parties—Here and Abroad • The main reason parties have become weakened in the U.S. is that we have become more centralized, except elections • How candidates are chosen are not dictated by a national party, but rather every state has their own process • Each state has some form of primary or caucus to select a candidate • The people get to vote in these, so the party’s only influence is by way of convincing people to choose their candidate • As we just saw, if people are not identifying with a particular party they are less likely to “tow the party line”

The Rise and Decline of Political Parties • The Founders disliked “factions” (parties) • Madison wrote about them in The Federalist Paper #10 • Washington’s Farwell Address condemned the idea • The first party was made up of Jefferson’s followers • They were called the Republicans or Democratic-Republicans • Hamilton’s followers were called the Federalists • In the years that followed, it was assumed that the parties would fade away • They did until after James Monroe • In these early years political participation was very limited and conducted mostly through local offices

The Rise and Decline of Political Parties • Please read the rest of this section (p. 197-199) on your own. • Party Realignments • Also known as critical or realigning periods • Realignments occur when a major, lasting change of what is “critical” to a party and who supports that issue • In 1860 the parties had to take a clear position on slavery • In 1896 it was an issue of the Gold Standard versus Silver • In 1932 it was the Great Depression (Democrats gained support from northern blacks and Jewish voters • Parties may end up dealigning as the “labels” of the parties becoming meaningless and we see more independents

Party Decline • The best evidence to see that parties are in decline is by looking at the ballot • More voters practice split-ticket voting versus straight ticket voting • Split-ticket means you choose candidates from various parties for various offices in the same election • Straight-ticket voting means you choose the same party for off offices in a given election (Republican for President, Senator, HoR, Governor, etc.) • How can we see this trend? • In 1988 half of the House Democrats were from districts that voted for G. Bush, Sr.

Party Decline • Split-ticket was practically unheard of before the mid-1900s • They used to give you a Democrat ballot or Republican ballot (Party-column or “Indiana” ballot) • Progressives pushed for a new type of ballot • The office-bloc or “Massachusetts” ballot listed all the candidates based on the office they were running for on the same ballot • President: Obama, Romney, Barr, etc.

National Party Structure Today • Both of the major parties have the same basic structure • National convention—meeting every 4 years for the party delegates (that big event the Republicans had in Tampa back in August 2012) • National committee—the group of delegates from each state to run party affairs between conventions • Congressional Campaign Committee—helps their congress members run for election/re-election • National Chairman—runs the day to day affairs of the party (elected by the committee), also used to help chose who got federal jobs (spoils system) • Please read the National Conventions section (p. 204-206)

State and Local Parties • Political machines were common in the 1900s (and are still around today in pockets) • They recruit members by using tangible incentives like money, jobs, or favors from the government • The Hatch Act was passed making it illegal for federal workers to take an active part in politics outside of voting and donating to campaigns • This did not end political machines—Chicago and NYC still struggle with these issues

Ideological Parties • These are parties that stand firmly on values/principles • They are usually minority parties (the Democrats and Republicans have had moments where they’ve acted like ideological parties) • Socialist, Libertarian, Right-to-Life Party, and Prohibition Party are all ideological parties • Frequently we will see the major parties adopt popular ideological party ideas to gain their support

Solidarity Incentives and Sponsored Parties • Some people join parties so they can be “in the know” or have the sense of belonging/status that comes with the political organization • This is called Solidarity Incentives • Sponsored Parties occur when some group within a community comes together and rallies for a certain party • For example, the United Mine Workers for against the Republicans in the 2012 election due to Democrats stance on mining versus green energy • This allows the party to campaign without spending much money • Most candidates however, have to have a personal following to get elected • They cannot rely on the other things we’ve talked about because many Americans have turned away from them—thus, you have to be charismatic and charming

The Two Party System • The Two-Party system is a political system with two dominant parties that compete for national elections (Democrats and Republicans in the US) • There are only 15 two-party systems in the world • One reason we have this is because of the winner-take-all system in elections • When we have an election the person who wins the most votes wins the election—this is called a plurality • Plurality is different from a majority • Plurality = Smith 41%, Jones 35%, Bradford 10%--Smith wins • Majority = Smith 41%, Jones 35%, Bradford 10%--no one wins because no one got 50% of the vote • The other reason we have the two party system is because voters can clearly see a difference between the two parties about what they believe and what is important to them • Democrats focus on healthcare and welfare while Republicans focus on defense and foreign trade

Minor Parties • There are four types of minor parties • Ideological Parties—already discussed • One-issue parties • Free-Soil, Know-Nothings, Prohibition, and Women’s party • Economic-protest parties • Rise up to deal with a particular economic issue—Greenback party, Populist Party • Factional Party (Splinter party) • Bull Moose, Progressive Party, Dixiecrats, American Independent, Reform Party

Assignment • Read p. 215-217 • By the end of class write one paragraph comparing/contrasting primaries and caucuses

Political Parties