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How Do We Choose A Party?

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Title: How Do We Choose A Party?


1
How Do We Choose A Party?
  • Membership - voluntary and generally composed of
    a mixture of the population
  • Segments of the population tend to support one
    party or the other (for a period of time)
  • Example Unions favored Democrats
  • Business favored by Republicans

2
Reasons For Choosing a Party
  • Family - 2 out of 3 Americans follow
    party allegiance of parents
  • Major Events war, depression
  • Economic Status
  • Place of Residence
  • Level of Education
  • Work Environment

3
The Two-Party System in American History
4
The Era of One-Party Domination
  • The Era of the Democrats, 18001860
  • The Era of the Republicans, 18601932
  • The Return of the Democrats, 19321968
  • The Start of a New Era - why 1968?
  • Since 1968 the Republicans dominated the White
    House, while Democrats controlled Congress

5
Minority Parties in the US Ideological Parties
  • Based on a specific set of beliefs, including a
    comprehensive view of social, economic, and
    political matters
  • Example Libertarian Party
  • Receive little votes, but are long-lived

6
Single-Issue Parties
  • Concentrate on a single public policy matter
  • Examples Know Nothings,
  • Right-to-Life
  • Faded into history as issues disappear

7
Economic Protest Parties
  • Focus on economic discontent
  • Example Greenback and Populist Parties
  • TEA Taxed Enough
  • Already

8
Splinter Parties
  • Groups that break off from one of the two major
    parties
  • Examples Bull Moose Party and Dixiecrats
    Green Party

9
The Key Role of Minority Parties
  • Introduced useful ideas in American Politics
  • Can play a spoiler role in an election when the
    two major candidates are evenly matched.
  • Most important is their roles as critics and
    reformers

10
Barriers to Minor Parties
  • Constitution no mention of Political Parties
  • Winner-takes-all elections
  • Petition in all 50 states plus DC to get on
    ballots
  • PA need 67,000 signatures
  • Rules regarding campaign fund raising -
    advantages to incumbent

11
The Organization of Political Parties
12
Reality of Political Parties
  • Two major parties are highly decentralized
    (internal fighting)
  • No real chain of command
  • States parties loosely tied to national
  • Local parties independent of states

13
The Role of the President
  • The Presidents party is usually more solidly
    united than the opposing
  • The President is the party leader
  • The other party has no comparable leader - party
    out of power

14
National Party MachineryFour Elements
  • 1. National Convention
  • Meet to nominate the presidential and vice
    presidential candidate every 4 years
  • 2. National Committee
  • Handles the partys affairs between conventions

15
National Party MachineryFour Elements
  • 3. National Chairperson
  • Heads up the national committee
  • 4. Congressional Campaign Committees
  • Job to increase partys congressional seats

16
State and Local Party Machinery
  • State job is to further the partys interests
    in that state
  • Local follow the States electoral map, most
    active a few months before an election

17
Three Elements of the Party
  • Party Organization
  • leaders, activists, and hangers-on who control
    party machinery
  • Party in the electorate
  • loyalists who vote their candidates
  • Party in government
  • officeholders at all levels of government

18
The Future of the Majority Parties
  • Political Parties have been in a state of decline
    since the late 1960s
  • Parties are unlikely to disappear as long as they
    continue to perform necessary functions

19
Reasons for Decline
  • Larger number of voters registering as
    independent
  • SPLIT-TICKET VOTING voting for candidates of
    both parties for offices at the same election.

20
Reasons (cont)
  • Greater internal conflict
  • Changes in technology of campaigning.
  • Growth of single-issue organizations who side
    with a candidate on a specific issue.

21
Questions
  • 1. What type of political party formed as the
    result of separating from one of the major
    parties?
  • 2. What type of party grows during periods of
    economic discontent?
  • 3. Name a key role minor parties play.
  • 4. The know nothings are an example of what
    type of minor party.
  • 5. What type of minor party usually forms around
    a strong personality?

22
  • 6. In general, how are the the organization of
    the two major parties in the United States
    characterized?
  • 7. When Mitt Romney lost the presidential
    election, why didnt he become the leader of the
    Republican Party?
  • 8. What is meant by the party platform?
  • 9. What is split-ticket voting?
  • 10. Why do some political analysts believe that
    the party system may collapse?
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