This document summarizes the key aspects of political parties in the United States. It discusses the role and functions of major parties like the Republicans and Democrats as well as minor parties. It also explains the origins of the two-party system and how political parties are organized at the national, state, and local levels. Factors that have contributed to the decline of political parties in recent decades are also outlined.

1. Chapter 5
Political Parties

2.  Political Parties are a vital link between the
people and their government.

3.  “A party of order or stability, and a party of
progress or reform, are both necessary
elements of a healthy state of political life.”
~ John Stuart Mill

4.  Major Party- a group of persons who seek to
control government through the winning of
elections and the holding of public office(s).
◦ Republicans
◦ Democrats
 Minor Party- one of the many political parties
without wide voter support.
◦ Green Party
◦ Prohibition Party

5.  Where in a typical political election, two major
parties dominate American politics.
 A number of factors explain why America has
had and continues to have a two-party
system.

6.  Framers of the Constitution were opposed to
political parties.
◦ Federalist No. 10: One can either destroy the
factions, or somehow, control its outcomes.
◦ Bi-partisan system still follows Madison’s “multiple”
faction government.
◦ Federalist No. 14: “Big Tent” involves inviting
multiple factions/spheres of thought into the Big
Tent
◦ A means of controlling the “mob mentality”

7.  Started with the Federalists and Anti-
Federalist
◦ More Americans except the idea of a two-party
system because there has always been one
◦ James Madison said that a larger Republic is better,
as to increase the number of factions, and to
distribute power
 No one party can overpower the system… or can
they?

8.  Single-member districts: Electoral process in
which one person is chosen by the voters for
each elected office
 Plurality: The winning candidate who receives
a the largest number of votes cast for an
office
◦ The plurality does NOT have to be the majority
 Bipartisan: The two major political parties find
common ground and work Together

9.  The American people over time have shared
many of the same ideals, same basic
principles, and same patterns of belief
 Pluralistic Society: One consisting of several
distinct cultures and groups
◦ The United States is the “melting pot” of the world
 Federalist Paper No. 55
◦ Argues that a smaller assembly is better for the
country. More likely to get things RATIFIED
◦ However, this is contradictory to the People’s Voice

10.  Consensus: A general agreement
◦ Not always so in American society
1. American Civil War
2. Great Depression
3. Vietnam Era
4. Persian Gulf War II (Afghanistan and Iraq)
5. Party Polarity (Republicans v. Democrats)

12.  A system in which several major and many
lesser parties exist, seriously compete for,
and actually win public office(s).
 Based around particular interests, including:
◦ Economic class
◦ Religious beliefs
◦ Sectional attachment
◦ Political ideology
 Creates a broader and more diverse
representation of electorates.

13.  Coalition- a temporary alliance of several
groups who come together to form a working
majority and so to control a government.
 Allows for multiparty arrangements to take
power.
◦ Western European democracies have been plagued
by multiparty systems
◦ Example: Italy
 Americans have shunned the multiparty
system

14.  A political system in which only one party
exists.
 Falls under a dictatorship in many nations.
 Within the United States, a modified one-
party system is prevalent in certain regions of
the country.
 Post Civil War Elections:
◦ Republican party = New England & Midwest
◦ Democrats = South

15.  Federalist No. 10 & 51
 Both majority and minority factions are
brought up, and Madison believes that the
majority factions are the most dangerous.
 Using the liberties of citizens can bring down
a Democracy.
 Factions- conflicting groups

16.  After the ratification of the U.S. Constitution:
◦ The Federalist- led by Alexander Hamilton, the
larger party had pushed for a stronger central
government.
◦ Policies appealed toward the nation’s financial,
manufacturing, and commercial interests.
◦ The Democratic-Republicans- led by Thomas
Jefferson and James Madison, were more
sympathetic toward the “common man” and favored
a more limited government with property owners
being a priority

17.  Election of 1800
◦ “The Great Revolution” signified the transfer of
political powers from one political party to another
◦ The incumbent Federalist president, John Adams,
was defeated by Republican Thomas Jefferson
 Incumbent- current office holder
 Since then, there have been 4 major periods
of political party dominance.

18.  Era of the Democrats (1800-1860)
 Although called Republicans, the Democratic-
Republicans can be compared to the
Democratic Party of today.
 Ran unopposed in national politics up to
1830.
◦ Split up into factions with the introduction of the
Andrew Jackson administration
◦ National Republicans (Whigs) vs. Democrats

19.  Era of the Republicans (1860-1932)
 Republican dominance started in 1860 with
the election of President Lincoln.
 Only political party to jump from 3rd party to
major party status
 Electorate- the people eligible to vote.
 Sectionalism- the devotion toward interests
of one section of the country or population

20.  The New Democratic Era (1932-1968)
 The Great Depression brought the election of
a new American leader, FDR
 Democrats held the national government up
to the Vietnam War
◦ Richard Nixon’s second attempt for the presidency
proved successful for a short-term Republican
reign

21.  Era of Division (1968-current)
 New points of interest have created a rift
between the public’s concern and that of the
political parties’ agendas

22. The Minor Parties
Ron Paul Ralph Nader

23.  There are MANY neglected third parties that
field a presidential candidate
◦ Constitution Party
◦ Green Party of the U.S.
◦ Communist Party
◦ Libertarian Party
◦ America First Party
◦ Freedom Socialist Party
◦ Reform Party
◦ Prohibition Party
◦ American Nazi Party
◦ And Many More…

24. 1. Ideological Parties
 Parties based on a particular set of beliefs-a
comprehensive view of social, economic, and
political matters.
◦ Have seldom been able to win many votes
◦ Libertarian Party- focuses on the individual
◦ Communist Party- focuses on the well-being of the
society

25. 2. Single-Issue Parties
 Parties that focus on only one public-policy
matter
◦ Most of these parties fade into history, with the
issue they stood for.
◦ The two major parties may address their key issue,
as one of their own.
◦ Usually found in the minor party name.
 Prohibition Party (Founded 1869)
 U.S. Marijuana Party (Founded 2002)

26. 3. Economic Protest Parties
 Parties rooted in periods of economic
discontent.
◦ There is no clear-cut ideological base
◦ A disgust toward the two major parties
 Occupy Wall Street
◦ Most often, they have been sectional parties
 Drawing strength from the South & West
◦ Greenback Party (1876-1884)
◦ Populist Party (1890s)

27. 4. Splinter Parties
 Parties that have split away from one of the
major political parties
◦ Most of the more important 3rd parties have been
splinter parties
◦ Form around a strong personality-an individual
◦ These parties usually collapse when the individual
steps down
 Bull Moose Progressive Party Progressive Party (1912)
 Green Party with Ralph Nader

28.  Third-party candidacy can act as a “spoiler
role” in a close election.
◦ Theodore Roosevelt’s Bull Moose Party took away
votes from the Republican candidate in the 1912
election
 Minor parties act as the critics and innovators
for political issues

29. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dd2-
OAgn8Q&feature=related

31.  State party organizations are loosely tied to
the party’s national structure
 Both major political parties are highly
decentralized, fragmented, disjointed, and
often beset by factions

32.  Each major American political party builds its
structure from four basic elements:
1. The National Convention
2. The National Committee
3. The National Chairperson
4. The Congressional Campaign

33.  State party foundations are set by State law:
1. State Organization- chairperson and the
State Central Committee
2. Local Organization- follow the electoral
map of a State
◦ Ward: a unit into which cities are often divided for
the election of city council members
◦ Precinct: the smallest unit of election
administration

34. 1. The party organization
◦ Party’s leaders, activists, and all those who
contribute [time, money, and skills]
2. The party in the electorate
◦ Appealing to the party’s loyalists
◦ They call themselves party members
3. The party in government
◦ Party’s officeholders

35.  Americans (for the most part) have excepted
the necessity for political parties in our
country
 However, these same people believe that
political parties need to be controlled and
regulated
◦ Limited Government

36.  The current weakness of political parties can
be traced back to several factors.
 Political Parties have been in a period of
decline ever since the late 1960s
◦ The unpopular Vietnam War

37. 1. Sharp drop in number of voters who classify
themselves as Republican or Democrat
◦ Rise in Independents/Minor Parties
2. Split-Ticket Voting: voting for candidates of
different parties for different offices at the
same election
◦ A true system with bipartisan behaviors

38. 3. Making parties more “open” to internal
conflict
4. Changes in technology
 Changes in media and campaigning
5. Growth of single-issue organizations in our
politics
◦ Putting previous concerns and focusing on one
issue
◦ Currently the (world) economy

39.  One-Party System  Split-ticket Voting
 Plurality  Incumbent
 Factions  Major Party
 Partisanship  Electorate
 Two-Party System  Splinter Parties
 Multiparty  Sectionalism
 Bipartisan  Coalition