Politcal Science- Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Political parties:

What makes up a political party?
1. Electorate- people who associate themselves with that particular party.
2. Government- all office holders who associate themselves with the party.
3. Party in organization- people who work to maintain the party.

Party systems-
1. One party system- a dictatorship. Membership is not voluntary- you must belong to it. Anyone elected is elected through the one party.
2. Two party system- two basic parties. The minority party doesn’t really have power. Usually, the nation is in agreement as to how the country should be run. Single member districts also promote the two party system. Why? Because the majority wins.

Factors that influence your party identification:
1. Ideology
2. Education
3. Income
4. Occupation
5. Race
6. Gender
7. Religion
8. Family
9. Region
10. Marital status

In America we have a two party tradition. The constitution doesn’t discuss political parties. James Madison in the Federal Papers wrote against factions in government. Washington, when he left office, told the nation to remain unified. Nonetheless, the seeds of political parties were sown way back when with the Federalists vs. Anti- federalists. Actual political parties began with Jefferson vs. Madison.

Why has America maintained a two party tradition? Over the years, smaller parties have cropped up.
1. Historical roots.
2. Way our electoral college works, it’s winner takes all. So there can’t be three parties because there would be no majority. We have a single member district- you either win or lose.
3. Election laws- some state laws make it hard for third parties to get onto the ballot.

Rise of political parties in America:

Formed during George Washington in the dispute between Hamilton and Jefferson. Hamilton was the Secretary of Treasury. He believed in a strong federal government. He wanted wealthy backing of the nation. Jefferson was a state’s rights man. His followers were called the democratic republicans. This was from 1789- 1800. In 1800, Jefferson became president and the Democrats took over from 1800- 1824. In 1824, there was a split in the Democratic Party. In 1828, Jackson became president. He won and formed a new democratic party called the Jacksonian democrats. This party wasn’t long lasting. Towards the end of his term, the Whigs took over. They were anti- Jackson. The Whigs won the presidency two times- Harrison and Taylor. In the election of 1860, a new party formed and a republican won- Abe Lincoln. But from 1860 and on, the Democratic Party became the party of the common man.

From 1860- 1932, the Republican Party was in power. It began as a third party- was a split off of the Whigs just before the Civil war- Lincoln was nominated. The party started out as a combination of many ideas, for example they were anti slavery and pro business. The Republican Party was nicknamed GOP- Grand Old Party. It dominated in the presidency and Congress for a long time.

The Democratic Party returned to strength in 1932 until 1968. FDR as a democrat was able to unite a lot of people- blacks, city dwellers, laborers and blue collared workers, unlike the republicans who couldn’t do this. This voting block was called the New Deal Coalition. FDR served four terms. From 1932- 1968, there were only two republican presidents. Until 1994, the Republicans didn’t have control of both houses of Congress.

From 1968 until today is called the Era of Government- one party controls the president and one party controls Congress. This causes a grid lock- nothing can happen because there are two sides.

In the election of 2000, George Bush, a republican, won the election. The Republicans also won in the House and Senate. In the mid-term election, they still kept control of the House and Senate. In the 2006 election, the Democrats controlled Congress, but the president was a republican. In 2008, both the presidency and Congress were unified under Democratic control.

Electoral dealignment- when voters don’t align themselves to any party.

Electoral realignment- when the dominant party loses control and the non-dominant party takes over.

Third parties-

Third parties never won a presidential election, but they have won state and local elections. Third parties are great because they bring reform. They introduce new ideas that have been adopted by the main party. The success of a third party leads to its downfall because other parties take their ideas.

Types of third parties:
1. Ideological third parties- specific social, political or economical belief.
2. Splinter/ fractional party- party that broke away from a major party. They are usually based around a poplar person:
a. Bull Moose party- broke away from the Democrats.
b. Strom Thurmond- formed a states’ rights party.
c. George Wallis- formed his own party called the American Independent party.
3. Single Issue party- focus on only one issue.
a. Free Soil party- slavery.
b. Anti-right- anti abortion.
4. Protest- political parties form in protest. These parties are formed in times of economic discontent.

Structure of Political parties-

Political parties must have organization in order to work. Parties are not really organized. They are somewhat decentralized and fragmented. The party of the president is usually somewhat more organized because they have a leader.

National conventions are the parties’ voice. Delegates meet the summer before election year and they choose presidential candidates. They also discuss and write up party platforms. The national committee manages the parties business between conventions. They choose the place for the convention, publish party literature and help the party raise money.

The national chairperson is chosen by the committee and he is responsible for directing the work of the committee. He helps fundraise and recruit.
Each party has a committee in the House and Senate. They make sure party members are being reelected and distribute money for campaigns.

State laws differ from state to state as to how the party is organized. Party organization in the state is similar to national organization. State parties are better because they are smaller and better funded than the past. State law determines how state party works. They have more money than in the past because of soft money- money that comes to the party from the national party doesn’t have to be reported to the federal government. The Federal Elections Campaign was passed in 1971- helped control money coming into the state. They could get money from the national party without reporting it. The McCain Feingold act limited soft money.

In recent years, affiliation with political parties declined.

Why are political parties weakening?
1. Third parties are challenging them.
2. There is a loss of loyalty.
3. Split ticket- can vote both ways.
4. There isn’t much difference between the two parties.
5. Party reform- parties are continuously reforming because they want to have a diverse group of people joining. This causes conflict in the party.
6. Methods of campaigning- allows politicians not to need the party so much.