Political Parties

Political Parties in American Society

Objectives:

1) Explain how political parties developed in American history, tracing the development of the two party system from its origins in the 1790s to its modern form with the Democrats and Republicans

2) Trace the role third parties have played in American political society, focusing on the most important minor parties in American history and the issues on which they championed.

3) Explain how the two major political parties are organized at the national, state and local levels, and what role those two parties play in American society today.

Development of Our Two-Party System

1) Political Party – an association of voters with broad common interests who want to influence or control decision making in government by electing candidates to public office

2) When the Constitution was created in 1787, there were no political parties in America. Most of our founding fathers were against them, and Washington’s original cabinet included men of different political beliefs. He believed that the best men should rule in government.

3) Thomas Jefferson (Sec of State) and Alexander Hamilton (Sec of the Treasury) opposed each other and eventually formed the original political parties

4) Democratic Party (1790s to Present)

· Thomas Jefferson’s party, originally called Democratic-Republican

· formed in the mid 1790s

· Supported by the farmers of America

· Jefferson believed that commoners were the key to American success

· Name changed to Democratic Party in 1828 under Andrew Jackson’s leadership

· Before the Civil War – party was controlled by the planter class of the South, and supported both slavery and its expansion

· Democrats were really hurt by the Civil War – they were seen as the party that opposed the Union (although many Democrats remained loyal to the Union, even in the South)

5) Federalists (1790s to 1816)

· Alexander Hamilton’s original party, formed in the mid 1790s

· Called “Federalist,” but not all the men who supported the Constitution during the fight for ratification sided with Hamilton. James Madison, a devoted federalist and author of many of the Federalist Papers, was a Democrat.

· Favored the northern wealthy businessmen and Southern planters over the commoners. Most Federalists distrusted common people.

· In favor of a stronger government to control the people.

· Strongest party in the 1790s, but lost favor with the voters by 1800

· Gone as a national party by 1816

6) Whig Party (1830 to 1854)

· Arose to compete with the Democrats

· Originally a coalition against Andrew Jackson – many competing interests from across America, all of them opposed to Jackson’s policies in one way or another

· Devoted to Henry Clay’s idea called the American System, which called for internal improvements, such as roads, bridges and other government projects to be paid for by increased tariffs (taxes on foreign goods entering America)

· Elected presidents in 1840 and 1848 by nominating popular army generals (William Henry Harrison in 1840 and Zachary Taylor in 1848)

· Fell apart over the issue of slaver and its expansion in 1854

· Southern Whigs went into the Democratic Party, while Northern Whigs created a new party.

7) Republican Party (1854 to Present)

· Formed in 1854 by Northern Whigs and some Northern Democrats (at least those opposed to the southern Democratic leadership)

· Before the Civil War (1861-1865), it championed many Whig ideas, but one issue held it together – Republicans were against the extension of slavery

· Sought to unite all political "orphans" in the North by opposing slavery in the territories, an issue on which they could all agree

· Purely sectional in nature -- didn't exist in most Southern States -- first and only major party in American history to rely on pure sectionalism to win

· After the Civil War – Republican presidents supported Reconstruction in an effort to court newly freed slaves who received the right to vote under the 15^th amendment

· By 1880 – Republican Party dominated by business leaders and has abandoned the idea of championing Civil Rights (that’s one of the reasons that Reconstruction promises went unfulfilled)

Third Parties

Third Party – any minor political party in American society. Since the American political system has been a two-party one since the beginning, other parties that have arisen over the years have been on the outside looking in, often with futile or marginal results. Only a few have ever collected any more than token support, especially in the presidential elections.

1) Populist Party (1890 to 1896)

· Collection of small farmers and laborers (workers) who split from the Democratic Party in the 1890s

· Called for the direct election of senators

· Called for an eight-hour workday and overtime for over 40 hours per week

· The Democrats eventually adopted Populist ideas in 1896, leaving Populists without the issues. Many simply went back to the Democrats.

2) Progressive (Bull Moose) Party (1912)

· Party founded by former Republican President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt in 1912

· Wanted bigger government and more regulation of business

· split the majority Republican voters in the election and thus threw the election to the Democratic candidate, Woodrow Wilson

· most Bull Moose Support went into the Democratic Party after World War I ended, and their legacy helped form the core of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s support during the Depression, a time when the federal government grew by leaps and bounds

Other Political Systems around the World

The two-party system found in the United States is not unique in the world, but is not all that common either. Most countries have a multi-party system, while a few have a one-party system.

One-Party Systems

· most often found in communist or Islamic nations

· only one political party is allowed by the government

· opponents are often jailed or killed (both are an effective way to silence)

· Examples: Cuba, China, Saudi Arabia

Multi-Party Systems

· Found in most industrialized countries outside the United States (Canada, France, Italy, Germany and others)

· Some countries have as many as 20 major political parties

· Governments are often formed around coalitions (people from different political parties that work together to run government)

· Can include some rather radical parties (socialist, communist, fascist, etc…). In a multi-party system, a party doesn’t need much support to be a major player

Republicans and Democrats Today – What does each Party Believe?

Republicans: Pro-life, lower taxes, less government services, no national healthcare, smaller government, favor business owners over workers, constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, strong military with no allied intervention, pro-NRA (National Rifle Association), and pro-death penalty

Democrats: Pro-Choice, higher taxes (especially on incomes over $200,000), more government services, larger government, favor workers over business owners, leave same-sex marriage out of the Constitution, less money spent on the military, better relations with our allies and the United Nations, for gun control, anti-death penalty

Organization of Political Parties

National Party Organization

· National Committee (RNC or DNC)

· Run by the chairman at the national level (not the President) who manages the party’s national fundraising efforts and coordinates strategy at the national level

· Holds a convention every four years, where delegates from the states nominate candidates for the presidency and vice presidency

· At the convention, the party writes a platform. This is a list of core beliefs and positions on major issues

· Today’s conventions are not really about nominating a candidate for the presidency, as the party knows who the nominee will be after the primaries (party only elections in the spring). Instead, the conventions are now seen as a way to reach millions of potential voters with the party’s message. In other words, they are expensive shows with little drama.

State and Local Organizations