Political Parties in
the United States
What is a Political
Party?

A political party is a group of people who share a
political ideology, and seek to control government
policy through peaceful means such as
identifying candidates for public office, and
supporting their election campaigns.
What do Parties do for
American politics?
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They recruit candidates, especially when there is
no incumbent
They support candidates financially and with
manpower
They educate the electorate to the virtues of their
candidate
When they win, they organize the government
Common Party systems
in today’s world
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Some countries have a One-Party System (e.g.,
the former Soviet Union under Communism)
Some have a Two-Party System (e.g., USA.
There are about 26 registered parties in the US,
but the traditional two -- Democrat and
Republican – have dominated for over a century)
Some countries have Multi-Party Systems (e.g.,
most European countries)
Why are there Political
Parties in the US?
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Political parties are not mentioned in the US
Constitution.
Washington and Madison warned against “the
divisiveness of faction”
Yet factions first appeared during the state battles
over ratification of the Constitution 1787-1789
Early Parties
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Federalists: favored the new Constitution,
wanted a powerful central government to which
state governments were subservient
Republicans (anti-federalists): skeptical of the
new Constitution, wanted safeguards for
individual liberties and feared relinquishing the
accustomed powers of state governments
Values of the Two-Party
System
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The two-party system provides a voice for
differing opinions
It forces compromise to achieve consensus. No
group with a large-enough membership will see its
opinions totally disregarded
It prevents ideological dictatorship
It reinforces the value of “loyal opposition” to the
government
Why didn’t the US
develop a multi-party
system?
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British heritage: Britain has a 2-party system
Reflects original Federalist/Anti Federalist
arguments
“Winner-take-all” electoral college system (in most
states) favors candidates with broad support. A
multi-party system would fragment
State election laws vary widely. Small parties
often find it difficult to compete
HISTORY OF POLITICAL
PARTIES IN THE UNITED
STATES
Political Parties in
History
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The Washington Administration (17891796) contained both Federalists and
Republicans (Republicans were the former
Anti-Federalists.)
Leaders included Alexander Hamilton
(Federalist) and Thomas Jefferson
(Republican)
Political Parties in
History
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Sentiment against government tyranny
under the Federalists led to
Republican sweep of offices in 1800
Jefferson’s presidency thus began
with the “Revolution of 1800.”
Political Parties in
History
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Jeffersonian Republicanism dominated
until 1824
It was helped by the demise of the
Federalists after the War of 1812
But the Republican Party itself split into
factions.
Political Parties in
History
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The “National Republicans” were similar to
the old Federalists
They wanted federally-financed
improvements that would help the country
grow
They were suspicious of states’ rights
They tended to be Westerners and
Northeasterners.
Political Parties in
History
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The Democrat-Republicans were closer in
belief to the old Jeffersonians
They were suspicious of a strong central
government and favored states’ rights
They tended to be Southerners
Eventually the Democrat-Republican Party
(or “Democrats”) were associated with
slavery.
Political Parties in
History
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Andrew Jackson was the dominant
Democrat figure of the era
His view of states’ rights differed strongly
from Jefferson’s
His battle with South Carolina over
nullification is one example
Political Parties in
History
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The Democrats dominated from 1800
until 1860
Their most serious opposition came
from the Whigs, formed in the late
1830s in opposition to Jackson
When Jackson left office, the Whigs
lost their issue and faded away
Political Parties in
History
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In 1856, a new “Republican” party formed
out of the remnants of the Whigs and a
new young group of anti-slavery men.
By 1860 it was the second major party in
the country
In 1860, it elected President Abraham
Lincoln
Political Parties in
History
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By the end of the Civil War, Democrats were
seen as secessionists and traitors
Republicans were seen as defenders of the
Union and of the rights of black citizens.
Republicans dominated in national elections
generally from 1860-1932, with only a few
exceptions.
Political Parties in
History
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Democrats adopted some “common
man” Populist causes in the 1896
election and achieved some limited
success
They returned to national prominence
and power with the “New Deal” of
Franklin Roosevelt in 1932.
Political Parties in
History
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This solidified the image of Democrats
that the party claims today:
The Democratic party is seen as the
party of the working man, of using tax
dollars to create an equitable society,
of using a strong central government
as a tool for social change.
Political Parties in
History
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The “New Deal coalition” put together
by FDR gathered blue collar workers,
Black voters, women, Catholics, Jews,
and city-dwellers.
Elections such as 1896 and 1932,
which bring new kinds of members and
new beliefs to a party, are called
REALIGNING elections
Political Parties in
History
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During this time, Republicans
characterized Democrats as the party
of radicalism and socialism.
They characterized themselves as the
party of restraint, of self-reliance, and
of free enterprise with no government
interference.
Political Parties in
History
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Democrats dominated in American
government from 1932 to 1968
The Democrats held either the
majority in Congress or the White
House (if not both) for those 40 years.
Political Parties in
History
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In 1946, Republicans gained control of
Congress. With Democrat Harry
Truman in the White House, the
country experienced divided
government
DIVIDED GOVERNMENT: One party
controls the presidency, and the
opposing party controls one or both
Houses of Congress
Political Parties in
History
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In the 1948 mid-term elections, Democrats
regained control of Congress
In 1952, Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower
was elected President and the Republicans
again gained control of Congress
In the 1954 mid-term elections, Democrats
regained control of Congress
In 1960,John F. Kennedy was elected
President, and the Democrats retained
control of Congress
Political Parties in
History
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Republican Richard Nixon was elected
President in 1968, and re-elected in 1972.
The Democrats retained their majority in
Congress
In 1980, Republican Ronald Reagan was
elected President. The Republicans gained
control of the Senate
Although Reagan was re-elected in 1984, the
Republicans lost control of the Senate and
the Democrats again controlled both houses
of Congress
Political Parties in
History
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In 1992, Democrat Bill Clinton was elected
President. The Democrats also controlled
both houses of Congress.
In the 1994 mid-term elections, the
Republicans gained control of both houses of
Congress.
After the 2000 elections, Republican George
W. Bush became President and the
Republicans continued to control Congress.
However, the Senate was equally divided
(50-50) and Republican Vice President
Richard Cheney held the tie-breaking vote
Political Parties in
History
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But in 2001, Senator Jim Jeffords (R-VT) left
the Republican party. Although officially an
independent, he caucused with the
Democrats. Thus they regained effective
control of the Senate
After the 2002 elections, the Republicans
held the Presidency and control of both
houses of Congress
In the 2006 mid-term elections, Democrats
regained control of both houses of Congress
Political Parties in
History
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In 2008, Democrat Barack Obama was
elected President and the Democrats
retained control over Congress
In 2010, the Democrats maintained control
over Congress, but in 2012, the Republicans
gained control of the House.
During some of these periods, one party or
the other has held a “veto-proof” majority (60
votes) in the Senate
Political Parties in
History
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At best, frequent change of control
and division can result in sharp and
honest political debate that results in
true consensus government.
Political Parties in
History
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At worst, it can result in stalemate and
total lack of progress that politicians
call “gridlock.”
Political Parties in
History
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Democrat President Bill Clinton
experienced this two years after his
first election in 1992
Congressional mid-term elections
brought Republican majorities to both
Houses of Congress in the so-called
“Conservative Revolution.”
Political Parties in
History
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The new House Speaker, Newton Gingrich
(R, Georgia) presented a conservative
agenda called “The Contract with America”
It called for strong defense, lower taxes,
tightening entitlement programs like
“welfare,” limitations on powers of committee
chairs, and 3/5 majority required to pass
ANY tax increase
Republican popularity soared
Political Parties in
History
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Sometimes, one party or the other displays
a significant shift to either the right or the
left
In 2002, both Republican and Democrat
parties shifted views to the right
Democrats shifted many of their positions
to avoid losing voters
Political Parties in
history
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Often, de-aligned voters refuse to join
the other party.
They may classify themselves as
independent, or drop out of the
political process altogether.
Political Parties in
History
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On the other hand, in cases where de-aligned
voters form new coalitions and gather new
supporters, the process called re-alignment
occurs.
It may result in an all-new political party (as
occurred with the Republicans in 1854) or it may
bring about a new belief system for an old party
(as happened with the Democrats in 1932)
“THIRD” PARTIES
Political Parties in
History
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Parties that do not affiliate with either
of the two major groups in the United
States are called “third parties,”
regardless of how many of them there
are.
Political Parties in
History
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A few of these third parties have
elected members to Congress; no
third party candidate has ever been
elected to the presidency.
Political Parties in
History
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Ironically, a strong and successful third
party is more likely to bring change to one
of the two major parties, than to establish
itself as a new and independent party.
KINDS OF THIRD
PARTIES
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IDEOLOGICAL THIRD PARTIES: are
based on a particular system of beliefs
Examples are the Socialist Party, the
American Communist Party, the Libertarian
Party, the Constitution Party
KINDS OF THIRD
PARTIES
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SPLINTER OR “PERSONALITY” PARTIES:
break off from one of the majors, usually under
the influence of a strong leader
They often die out when the leader steps aside or
ceases to be relevant
Examples are the Bull Moose Party, The Whig
Party, the Reform Party, the American
Independent Party, many others
KINDS OF THIRD
PARTIES
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SINGLE ISSUE PARTIES: form around one
public policy matter
Examples are the Free Soil Party, The Right-toLife Party, The Prohibition Party
KINDS OF THIRD
PARTIES
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PROTEST PARTIES: form around a group
of dissenters on an important public policy
issue, and usually arise during times of
economic hardship
Examples are The Anti War Party, The
Greenback Party, The Populist Party.
HOW POLITICAL
PARTIES ARE
STRUCTURED AND
ORGANIZED
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Effective organization is key to a political
party’s success
Political parties are very large
organizations, with diverse membership
It takes a flexible, de-centralized structure
to make room for variations in ideology.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The party of the current president at any given
time tends to be more tightly organized than the
other party
The President of the United States is
automatically the leader of his party,
guaranteeing high visibility and a strong rallying
point.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The opposition party has a tougher
organizational task
Usually -- but not always -- a high-profile
senior member of Congress emerges as
their philosophical leader
Often there seems to be no leader.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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THE NATIONAL CONVENTION serves as
the public voice of the party
Delegates from all over the country meet
every four years to rally support behind the
front runner.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The Convention formally nominates the
presidential and vice presidential
candidates (the “ticket”)
And writes the party’s belief statements for
the upcoming election season (“the
platform”)
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Until primary elections became widespread
during the 1970s, the Party insiders did all
choosing of candidates at the convention
In recent times, the convention formally
introduces the candidate to the Party.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The Conventions are partially televised,
though not to the extent nowadays that they
were in the early days of television.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Televised Convention speeches provide an
opportunity for national exposure for the up-andcoming younger members the Party thinks might
be acceptable for national office
Little-known Arkansas governor Bill Clinton gave
the opening address (criticized for its length) at
the 1988 Democratic National Convention
Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. was the keynote
speaker at the 2000 Democratic National
Convention
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION

Outside of a presidential election year, the
party’s business is handled by its National
Committee.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The National Committee is headed by the
National Chairman
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The National Committee and National Chair
are responsible for fund raising,
encouraging new membership, and
strategizing to help the party’s candidates
win elections.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Each National Committee also has a committee
organized in each House of Congress
These committees work to re-elect incumbents
from their party, and target opposition
representatives who might be apt to lose their
seats to a strong challenger.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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State laws determine how each party
organizes at the state level
As a rule, they are more tightly organized at
the state level than at the national level.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Since the 1971 Federal Election Campaign
Act, party National Committees have been
allowed to distribute national party funds to
the states
This has resulted in more cash being
available to state party organizations.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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These funds, nicknamed “soft money,” did
not have to be identified on a candidate’s
financial disclosure reports to the Federal
Election Commission
The candidate merely listed “RNC” or
“DNC” as the donor, rather than the
individual(s) who originally gave the
national party these funds.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Soft money was a boon to national
committees, making sure that state
organizations didn’t become too
independent of the national organization.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Soft money was also controversial,
because it could allow a candidate to
disguise the nature of his/her supporters by
channeling their donations first through the
national committee.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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The McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance
Reform Act in 2002 outlawed almost all
“soft money” contributions if channeled to
individual candidates
Soft money was restricted to being used by
the party only, for voter registration, generic
ads urging voters to “Vote Republican!”, etc.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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Campaign finance reform had its loopholes,
however.
One big one was allowing donors to
purchase “issue ads” without listing the
endorsement of a particular candidate.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATIONS
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Supporters of this exception called it a
free speech issue
Congress couldn’t legitimately stop an
interested party from buying advertising
time to promote anti-smoking laws, for
example, or anti-gun control laws,
without restricting that individual’s
freedom of expression.
STRUCTURE AND
ORGANIZATION
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This loophole was most effectively used in the
2004 election by an issue-advocacy group called
“Swift Boat Veterans for the Truth.”
This group purchased TV ads questioning the
legitimacy of John Kerry’s Viet Nam war medals
The ads never mentioned George Bush’s name,
and thus did not violate McCain-Feingold.
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING OUT?
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING?
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Recent trends suggest they might be; third
party challenges since the early 1990s have
taken votes from both major parties.
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING?
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More and more Americans are describing
themselves as independent, and say they
vote for the person, not for the party.
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING?

More and more voters are “splitting their
ticket” when voting, that is, they vote
Democrat candidates for some offices,
Republican candidates for others.
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING?

Many Americans indicate in polls that they
see little difference between the positions of
the two major parties
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING?
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As each of the major parties scrambles to
include more and more interest groups
under their party umbrellas, they find this
diversity weakens the strength created by
uniformity, and increases internal conflict.
ARE POLITICAL
PARTIES DYING?
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New campaigning technology,
particularly widespread use of the
Internet, has given wider exposure to
third party candidates.