Chapter Objectives

 Evaluate how political parties both contribute to and detract from democratic politics  Trace the history of political parties in the U.S. and assess the contemporary system  Compare and contrast the American Two- with the more prevalent multiparty system  Evaluate the relationship between political parties and interest groups  Assess whether political parties are experiencing a decline or revival How do parties contribute to democratic politics?

 Parties are a way for different levels of government (national, state, and local) and the different branches of government (legislative, executive, and judicial) to coordinate their efforts

 Parties are a way of holding politicians accountable collectively for government policies

 Parties identify problems, publicize them, and identify possible solutions

 Parties educate voters Parties Contribute (Continued)

 Parties are always on the lookout for promising candidates

 Parties maintain quality by weeding out the weak

 Parties narrow down the candidates for elections, simplifying the choices for the voters How parties detract from democratic politics

 Capturing governments and dictating what they do

 Confusing responsibility – taking credit for things they weren't responsible for, or blaming opponents for things their opponents are not responsible for

 Suppression of the issues (for example, Republicans avoiding immigration reform, or democrats avoiding social security reform)

 Dividing Society Parties Detract (Continued)

 Recruiting candidates for the wrong reasons (celebrities, for instance, who may or may not be qualified)

 Oversimplifying the electoral system - Jeffersonian

 Between the Federalists and Democrat- Republicans and Democrat-Republicans

 Federalists (located mostly in New England) supported commercial interests and favored an expansive national government

 Democrat-Republicans (mostly located in the South and West) supported agricultural interests – Jacksonian Democracy

, elected in 1828, may have been the first 'people's president'

 Voter participation saw a tremendous increase in 1828

 Jackson supporters were called Democrats

 Dominant issues were economical and territorial (national bank, tariffs, slavery, and expansion of the union

 By the early 1850's sectionalism and slavery resulted in the rise of a new party, Republican Third Party System – Civil War and Reconstruction

 The most competitive electoral era in American history

 Democrats were strong in the House, Republicans controlled the Senate

 Party organization reached its highest point, often called machines

 Populist party fused with Democrats in this period in a farmer-worker alliance, Republicans aligned with modern industrialists – Industrial Republicanism (1896-1932)

 The 1896 presidential election introduced a period of Republican dominance

 Only one democrat was elected president during this era

 This era is noted for its political reforms (advanced primarily by progressives), including the direct primary, secret ballot, civil service, and recall elections

Fifth Party System – The

 The critical elections of 1932 and 1936 established the

 Class-based party alignment with Democrats becoming the party of the common people (farmers, blue-collar workers, housewives and minorities) while Republicans became the party of business and the affluent

 Democrats dominated this era, with only Eisenhower winning the presidency during this period (major issues included the , World War II, and the Cold War The Contemporary Party System

 What characterizes this system is the amount of ticket-splitting, with voters supporting presidential and congressional candidates from different parties in the same election

 Beginning in 1964, Republicans made deep inroads in the Democrats' southern base

 The racial issue resulted in many blue-collar and urban whites abandoning the Democratic party

 Vietnam and social issues also divided Democrats

 Most agree that the new deal era is over, but there is little agreement on what has replaced it

Multi-party Systems

• Many countries use proportional representation in their electoral systems • Proportional representation gives rise to multi-party systems • Party majorities are often not present, therefore governments often rule by coalition • Example: if Democrats receive 30% of the vote, Republicans receive 33%, the Green Party receives 21% and the Tea party received 16%, Dems would get 30% of the seats in Congress, Tea Party 16% etc – a coalition government would involve one of the top two joining up with one or more of the bottom two in order to gain a majority Two-party system

• A two-party system is also determined by electoral rules • Our electoral system takes place in districts rather than nationally, it is a winner-take-all where only a plurality of votes is needed to win a seat in government • This ‘first-past-the-post’ (FPTP) system discourages the development of third parties Pros and cons of the Two-Party system

Pros: • Two-party system promotes centrism • Encourages parties to find common positions that appeal to large chunks of the electorate • Appealing to the middle promotes stability and, as a result, economic growth • Since it discourages radical parties, politics are more harmonious, simpler to govern Pros and cons continued

Cons: • Alternative views are downplayed • Elections are less competitive • Voter apathy is encouraged • Debate is dampened • There is more pressure to control government rather than compromise and make deals • NOTE: Most democracies, particularly newly formed democracies, have adopted proportional representation rather than the American system