A few political observers believe that political parties may soon go the way of "The OC" and
Backstreet Boys.
In the past, parties were needed to reach voters and raise campaign funds. But today, anyone with a fat wallet can access the public through the television, and the internet has introduced even more direct ways of contacting voters and raising cash.
Perhaps the era of the large, centralized political party as a dominant institution of American politics is nearing its end?

• Of course, not everyone believes that the parties are doomed to extinction. In fact, many believe that Barack
Obama's recent election to the presidency signaled a new era of Democratic Party domination. But are they right, or are Democrats just fooling themselves?
• What is the future of the political party?
• Do we still really need them?
• And if they do disappear, will it be a bad thing?

• What is a political party?
• What are the functions of parties?
• Describe the organization of the two major parties.
• Compare two party systems to multiparty systems.
• How has the power of the political party declined in the US?
• Dealignment and its impact on campaigns

• Realignment – define
• Identify and describe four realigning periods in US political history
• Identify the major voting coalitions of the major parties today

A. Linkage Institution between citizens & gov ’ t.
1. identification with issues
2. means to gain access
3. way to affect public policy
B. Linkage Institution between branches of government
1. partisan affiliations of leaders of branches give a basis for cooperation in designing public policy
2. judicial appointees get their presidential nomination based on party affiliation

C. Linkage Institution between state, local and federal government
1. Intersecting party relationships aid cooperation between levels of government and help to form public policy.
2. Governors have strong influence in party policy
3. State legislatures draw federal district boundaries

D. Electioneering : Candidate selection and support
1. for local thru national office formal party structure
2. to run campaigns and select party agenda
(platform)
E. Make policy preferences and agenda
1. legislative agendas for all levels of government
2. work through President & executive agencies
3. as an access point for special interests

"The Democrats seem to be basically nicer people, but they have demonstrated time and again that they have the management skills of celery. They're the kind of people who'd stop to help you change a flat, but would somehow manage to set your car on fire. I would be reluctant to entrust them with a Cuisinart, let alone the economy. The Republicans, on the other hand, would know how to fix your tire, but they wouldn't bother to stop because they'd want to be on time for Ugly Pants Night at the country club.
”
-Dave Barry

• Definitiona party is a group that seeks to elect candidates to public office by supplying them with a label by which they are known to the electorate .
• (AKA- party identification)
• Parties are not mentioned in the
Constitution.

• 1) Label, in the minds of the voters
• 2) Organization, recruiting and campaigning for candidates.
• 3) Set of leaders, organize and try to control the legislative and executive branches.
• ***US parties have become weaker in all three arenas.

• Americans do not join or pay dues to parties.
• Parties rarely affect one ’ s daily thoughts
• They remain separate from all other aspects of life.

• Federalism decentralizes power.
• National parties used to be a coalition of local parties.
• Now parties organize at all levels and do not communicate well.
• ***ALL politics are LOCAL*****
• Candidates are chosen through primaries not by party leaders.

Realigning election - An election during periods of change in the economy and society that proves to be a turning point, redefining the agenda of politics and the alignment of voters within parties.
There have been four main realigning elections: when Andrew Jackson was elected, when slavery was an issue, when McKinley was elected, and the New
Deal.

Early parties were
Federalist vs Antifederalist which morphed into
Federalist vs. Democratic-Republicans

• Founding fathers disliked parties, viewing them as factions (especially George
Washington).
• For parties to gain acceptance, people had to be able to distinguish between policy disputes and challenges to the legitimacy of government.

st
Democrats dominate 1800-1860
1800 election where power was passed
Peacefully from Federalist (John Adams) to
Democratic-Republican (Thomas Jefferson)

• Late 1820s- political participation became a mass phenomenon.
• 1832- presidential electors chosen by popular vote in most states
• More offices open for elections
• Beginning of the Spoils System

• Era of good feelings – common man gains more power as West is developed

nd
Republicans 1860-1932

It is the Democrats vs. the Whigs
The Whigs fracture the
Democratic
Party
1854
The
Republican
Party is born on the issue of slavery expansion

• A lot of sectionalism due to slavery.
• Most states were dominated by one party

• Definition- a party organization that recruits members via tangible incentives.
• Prevalent in the US until early 1900s.
• It has been curbed by civil service reform, voter registration, and social services being taken over by the federal and state government.

• 1) factions emerge in each party.
• 2) especially apparent in 1896 election
• 3) birth of Progressive Party.

Wm McKinley,
25 th President, 1897-1901
He forged the Republican coalition that will stay in power until the Great
Depression of the 1930s

• Progressives pushed to curb the power of the political parties.
• 1) Favored primaries, replacing nominating conventions.
• 2) Non-partisan elections @ the local level.
• 3) Strict voter registration requirements to prevent fraud.
• 4) Civil service reform to eliminate patronage.
• 5) Introduction of referendums /initiatives

• Progressive ideas are absorbed into the
Democratic platform

Democrats
1931-1968

Keynesian Economics -
A theory based upon the principles of John
Maynard Keynes, stating that government spending should increase during business slumps and be curbed during booms.
When Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected into office, he adopted Keynesian economics supporting the and influencing the economy.

• With Great Depression and two World
Wars the era of big gov ’t began
• Social Security is introduced in the Great
Depression
• Welfare is introduced in Johnson’s War on
Poverty in 1964

A New Era 1968-2008
Divided Govgt

Divided Government –
Governance divided between the parties, as when one holds the presidency and the other controls on or both houses of Congress.
During President Bush's last two years as president, we were in a divided government because the president was republican but
Congress was democratic.

• Party dealignment – people are moving away from party voting and often engage in ticket-splitting
• Voters are choosing candidates from different parties for different branches of government – resulting in a Republican
President & Democratic Congress or viceversa.

• Voters are sometimes making their own
“ checks & balances ” by voting for different parties so that the branches or the two houses of Congress will “ check ” one another.
• This happens in state government (like
VA) when Governor may be Democratic
(Warner) and House/Senate may be
Republican

• More “ checks ” than “ balance ” – different branches will check each others power and may result in gridlock
• One branch can try to pursue policy within the realm of their control – unilaterally – more difficult if division is within Congress
• Either side may try to appeal to public opinion to force the other side to agree
• Things get settled by the Judicial Branch

Gridlock - It refers to the difficulty of passing a law when the two houses in Congress are different parties or the president is a different party than Congress.
When we have a divided government, a gridlock can occur because each party has different items on their agenda.

An election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote.
Proportional Representation is usually used in multi-party parliamentary systems and the winners are determined by the amount of votes the parties receive.

Election system in which the candidate with the most votes wins.
In a winner-take-all system, the winner gets everything while the second place candidate and the rest of the candidates get nothing.

Minor Party - This small political party is also called a third party, rises and falls with a charismatic candidate or, if composed of ideologies on the right or left, usually persists over time.
There have been many minor parties that run for president in the past, however, none of them have won a presidential election.

• Third parties have gotten great attention, but in fact have not assumed the importance that all the academic attention on them suggests.
• No minor third party as ever come close to winning the presidency:
 ｷ Only 8 have won as much as a single electoral vote.
 ｷ Only 5 third party candidates including TR in 1912 and Ross Perot in 1992 have won more than 10% of popular vote.

• 1) Ideological parties- comprehensive, radical views, most enduring
– Examples include Communist, Socialist, Libertarians
• 2) One-issue parties- address one concern
– Examples: Free Soil, Prohibition
• 3) Economic Protest parties- regional
– Examples: Greenback, Populist
• 4) Factional parties- split from major party
– Examples: Bull Moose, Christian Coalition

Libertarian Party - Minor party that believes in extremely limited government.
The Libertarian Party wants a free market system, expanded individual liberties, and a foreign policy of nonintervention, free trade, and open immigration.

Green Party - Minor party dedicated to the environment, social justice, nonviolence, and a foreign party of nonintervention.
In 2000, the Green party's presidential nominee was Ralph
Nader.

Reform Party - Minor party that focuses on national government reform, fiscal responsibility, and political accountability. founded in 1995 by Ross Perot.

(other parties paid attention)

1 .
The electoral progress of third parties is in direct proportion to the failure of the two major parties to incorporate new ideas
2.
Influence: Major parties often take on the ideas of third parties.
– The Democratic Party in 1896 incorporated much of the Populist
Party ’ s platform.
– The Republican Party in 1970s took on George Wallace ’ s “States ’ rights ” plank.
– Both the Republican and Democratic Parties in 1992 took on Perot ’ s reform government ideas, reduce the deficit.
3 . Once the major parties incorporate their ideas, third parties burn out.

A. U.S. electoral system favors a two party dominance
B. Why a two party dominance
1. single member districts- one man/one vote
2. Electoral College – “ winner take all ”
3. plurality system stacks the deck against 3 rd parties
4. money – PAC money (contributions from interest groups) goes to party with power
C. Third parties have little voice in public agenda
1. Electoral College system makes it impossible to win states, even with broad support
2. have very little money because they have no power

Ralph Nader and the 2004 Presidential Election

• Rarity among nations today.
• Why does it exist in America?
• 1) Electoral system- winner-take-all system and plurality system limit the number of parties.
• 2) Opinions of voters- if one is failing we try the other for a little while
• 3) State laws make it very difficult for third parties to get on the ballot.

• Parties are very similar on paper.
• National convention has ultimate power. Meets every 4 years to nominate the presidential candidate.
• National committee is composed of delegates from states; they manage the affairs between conventions.
• Congressional campaign committees support the party ’ s congressional candidates.
• National Chair manages daily work.

National Chairperson
- The top official of each major party.
The national chairperson usually changes after every election.

• There is no hierarchal structure of political parties. Each level deals with its own issues. Ideas are not passed from national to state to local.
• The only thing that flows from one level to another is money.

A national meeting of delegates elected in primaries, caucuses, or state conventions who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for president and vice president, ratify the party platform, elect officers, and adopt rules

• National committee sets the time and place and tells each state its # of delegates and the rules for their selection.
• Dems and Repubs have very different ways of awarding delegates.

National Conventions
One big pep rally

Primaries
The widespread use of primaries and caucuses has resulted in party nominees being determined before the conventions actually convene during the summer

Primaries
A Progressive party invention – an attempt to hear more of the voices of the people

Primaries
This is an election in which voters choose the party nominees
Some states use a caucus system and some states use a primary system.
Primaries can be open, closed, blanket, etc.

• Election in which voter does NOT have to be affiliated with a political party to vote in the primary
Or in other words, any registered voter can vote for any party they choose

• Advantages: voter can be an independent and still participate in primary. In turn, they may become more invested in the process and participate more
• Advantage: moderate voter may agree more with candidate of another party.

*Disadvantages: Manipulation one party can manipulate the other party ’s primary by organizing its voters to participate in the other party ’s primary and perhaps vote for the candidate which they believe they could most easily defeat
* Dilution Since moderates/independents can vote they may end up choosing a candidate that does not accurately reflect the party ’s views

OPEN primary
2008 primaries: exit polls showed most Republicans didn ’t vote for
McCain in primaries but so many independents or moderate
Democrats voted in Republican open primaries for McCain he won the Republican endorsement…
Rush Limbaugh, conservative radio talk show host, pushed Operation
Chaos, asking Republicans to vote in Democratic primaries for Hillary Clinton b/c Republicans felt their candidate could more easily defeat her if she was the
Democratic nominee

OPEN primary
Is an open primary constitutional?
It restricts freedom of association….

Primary election in which only persons registered in the party holding the primary may vote.
You can vote in a closed republican primary, only if you are registered as a republican.

Advantage: there is an incentive to join a political party and thereby may increase voter political participation

All candidates appear on the same ballot and the two highest voted candidates proceed to a runoff, regardless of party affiliation
2008 SC ruled this constitutional….

The most important ones?
Why the first ones of course… Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary
It makes or breaks the front runners
It brings lots of money…..
Jan. 3rd

Caucus - A meeting of political party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.
In January 2008,
Obama won the
Iowa Democratic
Caucus.

So, when you register to vote should you register by party affiliation or independent?
Search the web for types of nomination procedures in different states…..

• In the early stages of the primary season, the two or three most viable candidates are culled from the long list of contenders, and by late spring, one has usually secured the necessary number of delegates to be selected at the national convention
• In the unlikely event that a single candidate has not sewn up the nomination, the Democratic
Party has taken additional steps to avoid a contentious, divided convention:
Superdelegates.

SUPERDELEGATES!

Superdelegates are
14% of delegate seats reserved for party leaders and elected officials - they DO NOT have to pledge to a particular candidate.

• States are awarded Superdelegates based on the state party's effectiveness in delivering their votes in the preceding presidential election.
.
• These Superdelegates are free to vote for whomever they want. But a clear priority among these Superdelegates has been party unity; consequently, they have tended to vote for the frontrunner to secure or strengthen his majority.

• Formulas are used by both parties to allocate their delegates to the national convention.
• The Republicans reward those states that consistently favor their candidates in presidential and congressional elections.
• Democrats reward larger states that consistently support their candidates.
• The result is that republicans give more delegates to states from the South and Southwest, whereas the democrats give to the North and West.

• Today ’ s national convention is similar to a large pep rally for the nominee. It is used to ratify the choices made by the voters during the primary season.
• The party in power (executive branch) has their convention after the party seeking office holds their convention. Usually a week or two after.

• In short, the changing role of conventions is largely a reflection of the increasing democratization of the nomination process. In more states, more party members participate directly in the actual selection of the party nominee. The goal of opening up the process, as envisioned by Progressive reformers in the early 20th century, has been accomplished.
• It's true that we are now left with curious political rituals every four years: pageants filled with endless speeches, balloon orgies, and ridiculous hats. But the real drama has been taken from the convention hall to the campaign trail —where it should be in a democracy.

Party Realignment - Realignment occurs when the economy and society is changing causing the parties to change their policies and agenda.
Some people say that realignment is currently occurring but just very slowly because of the current economic situation the United States is in.

Party Dealignment - The weakening of partisan preference that points to a rejection of both major parties and a rise in the number of independents.
Some people do not think that dealignment is actually occurring because twothirds of independent voters are really partisans