7/11/18
AP GOV
POLITICAL
PARTIES
REVIEWED!
Government in America(Pearson) Chapter 8
American Government: (Wilson) Chapter 9
Institutions & Policies
• A poli'cal party is a group
trying to win elec'ons and
control the government
• Party membership: open and
fluid
• Party as an organiza'on:
na'onal, state, and local
offices and staff
• Party in government: elected
officials who hold poli'cal
office
• Important point: poli'cal par'es are an
example of a linkage ins'tu'on
• Par'es select/recruit candidates to run
for office
– Back in day party leadership used to
nominate candidates
– Now party membership vote for
nominees in primary elec'ons
• Par'es run campaigns
– Campaign management (media
strategy & fundraising)
• Par'es ar'culate policies and plaJorms
– Mobiliza'on and educa'on of
voters
• Par'es coordinate policymaking
between execu've and legisla've
branches
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THE PARTY IN THE ELECTORATE
• Preference for one poli'cal
party over another is
known as party
iden'fica'on
• Increasing number of
voters iden'fy as
“Independents”
• Straight 'cket vo'ng:
voter chooses candidates
from the same poli'cal
party for every office up
for elec'on
• Ticket spliWng: vote for
different poli'cal par'es
for different poli'cal
offices
• Political party organization exist at the local,
state, and national level
• Local parties were once the main party
organization
– Urban political machines got out the vote
and rewarded voters for their support
• NY: Boss Tweed
– Jobs given to supporters / campaign
contributors (patronage)
– Progressive Era reforms required jobs be
“merit based”
• State party organizations decide the rules for
voting
– Open primary: all voters can vote in the
election
• Do NOT have to be registered with the
political party to vote for the candidate
– Closed primary: must be registered party
member to vote
• National convention takes place
every 4 years to formally
nominate the presidential
candidate and to adopt the party
platform
• National committee is run by a
National Chairperson who
manages the operations of the
party
– Hires staff
– Raise money
– Represent party in the media
– Daily duties of the party
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THE PARTY IN GOVERNMENT PROMISES & POLICY
• The political party in power
will have the most influence
over public policy
• Coalition are individuals and
groups that support a party
based on the party’s
performance in office.
• Oftentimes campaign
promises are not kept
– LBJ: Vietnam
– Bush #1: taxes
• Major factor- losing control of
legislative branch
PARTY ERAS IN AMERICAN HISTORY
• No mention of political
parties in the Constitution
• Washington issued a
warning about political
parties in his “Farewell
Address”
• Many other democratic
countries have more than
two parties
• For most of American
history a two-party system
has been the norm
PARTY ERAS IN AMERICAN HISTORY
• 1796-1824: 1st Party System- Federalist vs.
Democratic-Republicans
– Federalist (Hamilton)
• Favored a strong central
government (BUS issue)
– Democratic-Republicans (Jefferson)
• Favored strong state government,
weaker national
• Agrarian
– Election of 1800: loyal opposition and
rotation of power
• 1828-1856: 2nd Party System- Whigs vs.
Democrats
– Democrats (Jackson)
• Expanded suffrage for white males
– Elimination of property
requirements for voting
– Whigs (Henry Clay)
• Formed in opposition to Jackson
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PARTY ERAS IN AMERICAN HISTORY
• 1860-1928:Republicans & Democrats
– 1850s the Republican Party formed in
opposition to the expansion of slavery
• Post Civil War: Favored high tariffs,
internal improvements, etc.
– Democrats control the south & urban
areas
• 1932-1964: New Deal Coalition
– Great Depression and the election of 1932
led to a shift in party loyalties
– Democratic party under FDR supported
increased government involvement
– New Deal coalition: urban residents,
unions, the poor, African Americans, etc.
– New Deal coalition kept Democrats in
power
• Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society
• Battle over Vietnam War and civil
rights policies- Fractured the New
Deal coalition
PARTY ERAS IN AMERICAN HISTORY
• 1968-Present: Southern
Realignment
– Nixon wins Presidency in 1968
• Support for states’ rights,
law and order, strong
military
• Southern white voters left
Democrats ever since
Democrats supported civil
rights in 1948
• Partisan realignment in the
Southern states
• Era of Divided Party Government
– Different parties control the
executive and legislative
branches
• Political Dealignment: voters
moving away from both parties
3rd PARTIES IN AMERICAN POLITICS
• Even though we have a two party
dominated system, third parties do
exist
• Three types of 3rd parties:
– Causes parties: promote a certain issue
(prohibition, anti-abortion, etc.)
– Offshoots of major parties: Teddy ran in
1912 under the Progressive Party
– Individual aspirations: party that forms
around a individual trying to get elected
• Third Parties rarely win office, but
can impact the outcome and shape
the debate
– Split the vote
– Force issues into the national debate
• Why only two parties?
– U.S. has a winner-take-all system, first past
the post, etc.)
– Other countries have proportional
representation
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• The issue of political parties is
extraordinarily complex
• Responsible party model is the belief
that the majority party present a distinct,
comprehensive governing program and
commit toward its implementation
– Majority party would accept
responsibility for its policies
• Reality: political parties are
tremendously complex and oftentimes
do not agree on party platforms
– Southern Democrats are much more
conservative than Northern
counterparts (“Blue Dog Democrat”)
– Party leadership is weak in the U.S.
making it hard to enforce party unity
and voting
