Political Parties Chapter 8 AP U.S. Government and Politics Introduction A political party is a team of men (and women) seeking to control the government by gaining office in a duly constituted manner. U.S. campaigns are both party-centered and candidate-centered. Party-centered - the Republican and Democratic parties compete across the country election after election. Candidate-centered - individual candidates devise their own strategies, choose their own issues, and form their own campaign organizations. What are the functions of a political party? Parties are linkage institutions; they serve to connect citizens with government. Party Competition develops when Americans vote. Voters choose between candidates who represent the Republican and Democratic parties voters opinions are narrowed; the party that wins gets to govern. Functions of Political Parties Pick candidates and get their candidates elected. Recruit candidates for office. Organize and run campaigns. Organize voter registration drives, recruit volunteers, work to increase participation. Present alternative policies for operating the government. What are the functions of a political party? Provide a political identity and give cues to voters. Each party has an image gives the public a familiar platform. Articulate and coordinate specific policies. Coordinating policymaking. Through party identification, politicians in different government branches work together and support each other. Accepting responsibility for operation of government. Staffing executive branch with party supporters, developing linkages among officials to implement their policies. Act as organized opposition to the party in power. By organizing opposition to the in party, the opposition party forces debate on policy alternatives. The Party in the Electorate Most voters have a party image a perception of what a party stands for. Liberal or conservative, pro-labor or pro-business, etc. Party images help shape party identification, the self- proclaimed preference to one party over another. Voters who call themselves independents are likely to engage in ticket-splitting. They vote with one party for one office and another party for the other office. Party Organization Structurally, U.S. parties are loose associations of national, state, and local organizations. Through the New Deal of the 1930s, citizens were dominated by party machines. Party machines depended on rewarding their voters in some material fashion. Patronage was one of the key methods used by party machines. Jobs were given for political reasons, not on merit. Reforms have made party machines inactive. The void created by the absence of party machines has been filled by county-wide party organizations. They distribute signs, produce and mail literature, register voters, etc. 95% of party activists work at the local level. Local Parties The 50 State Party Systems At the state level, no two party systems are exactly alike. State party organizations determine the type of primary elections held in that state. Open primaries vs. closed primaries. State parties are on an upswing. Almost all have a physical headquarters. Budgets are increasing and they have professional staffs and high-tech equipment. National Party Organizations The chief power of national organizations is the national convention. Meets every four years to choose presidential candidates and write the partys platform. The national committee is responsible for operating the party between conventions. Day-to-day activities are the responsibility of the national chairperson. Hires staff, raises money, pays bills, and attends to daily duties of the party. Promises and Policy The party that controls the most government offices has the most influence over the policy process. What a party does and promises to do influences who joins its coalition. Politicians success in keeping their promises depends on a number of factors. Public support, the role of the opposing party The History of U.S. Parties America is a two-party system and has always been. Party Eras are historical periods in which the majority of voters cling to the party in power, which tends to win a majority of elections. Party eras are punctuated by critical elections, in which new coalitions are formed and the majority party is often replaced by the minority party. This can lead to party realignment, the displacement of the majority party by the minority party. Usually associated with national crisis. : The First Party System Many of Americas early leaders distrusted parties. Washington warned of the baneful effects of parties in his farewell address. Madison likened parties to special interests Federalist #10 The first political parties originated from a rivalry between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton organized the Federalist Party. Jefferson created the Democratic-Republican Party. After Jefferson won the 1800 election, no Federalist would again control the white house. In the 1820s, it appeared that the political system may operate without parties. The Era of Good Feeling : The Democrats vs. the Whigs Policy differences split the Democratic-Republicans. The dominant faction, led by Andrew Jackson, became known as the Democrats. Jacksons goal wrest political power from elites. Jackson created a grassroots party, a party organized at the level of the voters, which depends on voter support. Voting rights were extended to those without property, causing many more people to vote. During this time the Whig Party was created by opponents of Jackson and the Democrats. It was short lived, as the issue of slavery tore the party apart. : The Two Republican Eras As the Whigs disintegrated, a northern-based anti- slavery party called the Republican Party emerged. In 1860, Republican nominee Abraham Lincoln won with just 40% of popular vote, causing Southern states to secede. Civil War only time in U.S. history where Two-Party system failed to peacefully solve Americans political differences. Since the Civil War, America has settled into a pattern of competition the Republican and Democratic parties. They have been able to respond to crucial times through reorganization through change. The 1896 election shifted party coalitions and entrenched the Republicans for another generation. : The New Deal Coalition The Great Depression signaled another realignment and strengthened the Democratic party under the New Deal Coalition. The New Deal coalition consisted of urban dwellers, labor unions, Catholics and Jews, the poor, Southerners, and African Americans, Many of the same members of todays Democratic coalition. Democrats controlled the government until 1968, where Lyndon Johnsons Vietnam War Policies opened the door for the Republicans. 1968-Present: The Era of Divided Government Since 1968, America has been characterized by periods of divided government. No single party has dominated American politics in this era. Several trends have emerged: Today, the Republican Party dominates politics in the South. Northeastern and Western States are increasingly Democratic. Since the 1970s, divided government has become common. In a divided government, different political parties control the presidency and one or both houses of Congress. Party dealignment has also become more common. Gradual disengagement of people from the parties shown by shrinking party identification. Electoral and Party Systems U.S. history has been dominated by a two-party system. Most democracies have a multiparty system, in which three or more parties have the capacity to control government. Americas two-party system is the result of voting in single-member districts. (House of Representatives) The candidate with the most votes in a district wins the office winner-take-all system. The Electoral College works this way as well in most cases, whoever wins a states popular vote gains all of that states electoral votes. Discourages minor parties. Different from Europe, where proportional representation is used to allocate seats according to a partys share of the popular vote. Politics in the Two-Party System The main goal of a political party is to get its candidates elected to office. To do this, they try to attract majority support by staying near the center of the political spectrum. Median Voter Theorem states that parties can maximize their vote by winning voters in the middle. Current trends in party coalition: The gender gap represents the difference between men and women in political attitude and voting preference. Women more likely to have liberal views and be Democrats. Hispanic vote is a major key to both parties; currently more Democrats than Republicans. Minor (Third) Parties The U.S. has always had minor political parties.minor political parties They form to promote policies their followers do not believe are being represented adequately by the two major parties. Types of Minor Parties Reform parties Claim that the two major parties are having a corrupting influence on government. Progressive Party, Reform Party (Ross Perot) Single-issue parties Formed around a single issue of overriding interest to its followers. Free-soil Party, Prohibition Party, Right to Life Party Types of Minor Parties Ideological parties characterized by ideological commitment to a broad philosophical position. Socialist Workers Party, Libertarian Party Factional Parties minor parties created when a faction within one party breaks away to form its own party. Bull Moose Party (Roosevelt), States Rights Party The Weakening of Parties Many political scientists feel political parties are getting weaker. Candidates, not parties, have the most influence in politics. More people identify themselves as independents. More campaigns are candidate-centered as opposed to party centered. Increase in split-ticket voting. Parties are more open. Direct primary elections replaced parties nominating candidates for office. Candidates now compete for public support, not necessarily the support of their party leaders. The Weakening of Parties, cont. Candidates now directly get most money. It doesnt pass through party leaders. Decline of patronage jobs also weakened parties. Government jobs are given to people loyal to a particular candidate, not an entire party. Dealignment Despite losing influence, party organizations are in no danger of going extinct. Understanding Political Parties Parties are essential elements of democratic government. Critics of American political parties have called for a responsible party model. Founders were concerned that political parties would trample individuals rights. In America, weakening parties have allowed elected officials to have great freedom in decision making rather than toeing the party line. Founders would be happy with this as the party hasnt become too strong.