12/7/0912/7/09

n Bell Ringer: Complete a KWL chart for political Parties

n Mission: Introduce Political Parties through political affiliation and current events

n After Class: Continue reading and taking notes on chapter 8

Political PartiesPolitical Parties

Why does the United States have a two party system

Why does the United States have a two party system

n What is a Political Party?

n What is a Political Party?Political party: an organization that

sponsors candidates for political office under the organization’s name

Nomination: designation of as an official candidate of a political party

Party Functions

1. Nominating candidates2. Structuring voting choice3. Proposing alternative government programs4. Coordinating the action of government officials

Political Parties rolesPolitical Parties roles

Political parties arePolitical parties areimportant in makingimportant in makingpolitical policy programs.political policy programs.

•• Democratic is at least 2Democratic is at least 2party systemparty system

•• Authoritarian is a singleAuthoritarian is a singleparty onlyparty only

•• Parties perform politicalParties perform politicalsocialization to buildsocialization to buildsupport for theirsupport for theirpositions andpositions andcandidatescandidates

Interest AggregationInterest Aggregation

Takes place atTakes place atvarious levels.various levels.•• Within individualWithin individual

partiesparties

•• As the partyAs the partychooses itschooses itscandidatescandidates

•• When the partyWhen the partyadopts policyadopts policyproposalsproposals

n The Preparty Period and Historyn The Preparty Period and History

Parties were not mentioned in the Constitution

Parties did not exist in any recognizable form: factions were a source of concern

Factional politics grew during Washington’s presidency

The First Party System: Federalists and Democratic Republicans

Election of 1796: the Federalists, led by Hamilton, faced the Democratic Republicans, led by Jefferson

Democrats vs. RepublicanDemocrats vs. RepublicanThe Current Party System: Democrats and Republicans

The Republican party was formed in 1854 in opposition to slavery

Critical elections have marked the present party system

Critical Elections: elections that produced a sharp change in patterns of party loyalty among voters

The election of 1860 was the first critical election

Democrats and Republicans differ considerably in political ideology

Democrats spend to advance social welfare

Republicans spend on other priorities, including defense

Despite ideological differences, the parties are similar in that they are both capitalist parties that reject government ownership of the means of production

Two Party SystemTwo Party SystemElection of 1860 established the two-party system

Two-party system: a political system in which two major political parties compete for control of the government; candidates from a third party have little chance of winning office

Voters in a given region may strongly favor one party over another

n What observations can you make from this chart?

n Will these two parties continue to dominate American Politics?

Minority PartiesMinority Partiesn Minor Parties in America Minor parties’

most important function: safety valve

National Party Organization

The role of the national committees changed during the 1970s

Democrats focused on being more inclusive in choosing convention delegates

Republicans focused on strengthening fundraising, research and service roles

Local Political PartiesLocal Political PartiesState and Local Party Organizations

Party machines were crippled by federal expansion of social services

Individual state and local organizations vary widely in strength

Future of the Party

Future of the Party

American political parties are among the most decentralized in the world

Parties as organizations are becoming stronger

Still a question as to how well they link voters to government

*Do you think political parties control the candidates or the other way around?

Responsible PartiesResponsible PartiesFour principles of responsible party government:

1. Parties should present clear and coherent programs to voters

2. Voters should choose candidates on the basis of party programs

3. The winning party should carry out its program once in office

4. Voters should hold the governing party responsible at the next election for executing its program

Parties seem to be fulfilling the 1st and 3rd principles