Political Parties

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• Political Parties
• What Parties Do for Democracy?
• Party Functions
• Political parties are organization that seek
  power by electing people so that their platform
  and philosophy becomes policy
• Organize the Competition
• They designate candidates to run under their
  label
• They train them, raise money and provide staff
  for them too
• Part of this is influenced by how states organize
  their ballots
• Most states have party column ballots. Voters
  are allowed to vote a straight ticket for all
  party candidates
• Other states have office block ballot (Illinois
  does)- this ballot is organized by office
• In some local elections and also for judges- in
  most states (not Illinois), those elections are
  nonpartisan. The political parties has little or
  no influence

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• 2. Unify the Electorate
• They bring many people of different backgrounds
  together for a common cause
• Sometimes it is easier to get a coalition to
  attack a position rather than support one
• 3. Help Organize Government (both state and
  national level)
• Congress is organized along party lines
• The party that usually controls the executive
  branch (at any level) can use patronage.
• Party members are then
  given jobs as officials or judges
• 4. Translate Preferences into Policy
• Policy decisions usually do not take place
  overnight
• In the U.S., reelection is key to eventually make
  big policy changes
• 5. Provide Loyal Opposition
• Your party is a watchdog over the other
  (especially if it is in power)
• Sometimes a Honeymoon period will occur after a
  national tragedy (it usually doesnt last long)

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• The Nomination of Candidates
• Political Parties have used (and continue to use)
  caucuses, party conventions, and direct primaries
  to nominate their candidates for office
• A Caucus is a meeting of party members to choose
  official for public office (Iowa)
• A convention use to be the way parties chose
  their presidential candidate. Now, they are one
  big pep rally
• Most states use the direct primary method
• Two MAIN types
• Open primaries (Illinois) - any voter can vote
  for any party
• This usually allows crossover voting (voting for
  a party other than the one you usually do)
• Closed Primaries- you must be registered in the
  party to vote for that party
• Some states have tried (and failed) to use a
  blanket primary

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• Party Systems
• One Party System
• The political party captures control of the
  government and doesnt allow other parties to
  form
• They usually allow elections, but they are not
  competitive because there is only one party on
  the ballot
• Two Party System
• Yes, there are more than two parties, but only
  two have a realistic chance of winning
• Third parties usually dont have a chance because
  of the winner-take-all system
• Multiparty System
• More common than a two-party
• Many parties exist and compete for control
• Proportional Representation is used - a system in
  which candidates are elected in proportion to the
  number of popular votes they receive
• This encourages coalitions, or loose alliances,
  to create a majority vote so legislation can be
  passed

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• Minor Parties
• Also called third parties
• They are usually organized around an ideology and
  usually can come from a split
• They usually can effect the major parties in two
  ways
• change the outcome of the election (spoilers)
• make the major parities or candidates talk about
  the specific issues

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History of American Political Parties The first
political parties were the Federalist and
Anti-Federalist Our party system has been shaped
by realigning elections (turning
point) 1824- Jacksons Democrats 1860- The Civil
War and the Rise of the Republicans 1896-
Transition in the Republican Party 1932- FDRs
New Deal (after the depression) 1974ish DIVIDED
GOVERNMENT
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• American Parties Today
• People dont like themwe dont trust them,
  however, we still like the label
• The parties at the high levels are mostly
  moderate (kind of)it depends on their candidate
• PARTIES SEEK OUT THE MODERATES because their base
  is secure
• You also see parties split (especially high
  ranking members) depending on where the
  politician is from

• PARTIES AS INSTITUTIONS
• Parties have rules, procedures and organization
  structure
• 1. National Party Leadership
• The national party conventions is supreme
  authority (they nominate presidential candidates
  and adopt rule and the platform)
• The party committee and the chairperson are the
  top ranking members
• Both parties have grown in size and power because
  of the amount of money flooding into the party
  (especially soft money)
• Parties at the Grassroots level
• Most of the grunt work is done here.

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• Parties in Government
• They help bridge the separation of powers
• In the legislative Branch
• Partisanship is serious in the Congress
• Remember, your power is determined by the
  majority party
• In the Executive Branch
• The President, Vice President, Senior Staff, and
  Cabinet are almost always from the same political
  party (Bush had one Democrat in the cabinet
  during 1st term)
• Appointments are also important because the
  president can put partisan players into the
  highest levels of the federal government
• In the Judicial Branch (it is more than the
  Supreme Court)
• Judges/justices are to be nonpartisan
• Party ID and ideology still play a huge role when
  selecting a federal judge
• Sometimes the president gets burned on a nominee
  (i.e. Bush 41 selecting Souter)
• At the State and Local Level
• Some states (including Illinois) have local
  parties play HUGE roles

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• PARTIES IN THE ELECTORATE
• Party Registration
• In most states, you must register with your party
  preference
• They are then registered party members
• Party Activists
• Usually fall into 3 categories
• Party regulars
• candidate activists
• issue activist
• What is unique about candidates and issue
  activist is that they would rather lose the
  election than compromise
• Party Identification
• This is an informal and subjective affiliation
  with a political party
• IT IS THE SINGLE BEST PREDICTOR OF HOW PEOPLE
  WILL VOTE
• Partisan Realignment and Dealignment
• We really have not seen a major realignment since
  the New Deal
• People argue that a Dealignment is taking place
• This is where people are alienating the parties
  and declaring themselves independent
• The only problem is that nearly 70 of these
  people are actually partisan in their voting
  behavior and attitudes

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• Campaigns and Elections Democracy in Action
• Most election rules are set by the states,
  however, most of the conditions and requirements
  are made by the Constitution
• Regularly Scheduled Elections
• Election day is the first Tuesday after the first
  Monday in November in even numbered years
• Other countries- like France, England, and Japan
  have varied election chosen when the party in
  power wants them
• Fixed, Staggered, and Sometimes Limited Terms
• House-
• 2 year terms
• Elections every two yearsall 435 members up at
  same time
• No term limits
• Senate-
• 6 year terms
• Elections every two years (staggered) with 33 of
  senate up at once
• No term limits

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• President-
• 4 year terms
• 2 term limit
• Some states required you to give up your seat if
  you run for a higher office
• Term Limits
• In 1951, the 22nd amendment was ratified limited
  the president to two terms
• When a politician cannot or will not run again,
  he/she is labeled a lame duck
• Winner-Take-All
• It is simple the person with the most votes wins
• You dont need a majority, just a plurality
• Most American districts are single-member
  districts- this means the voter chooses one
  representative or official

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• The Electoral College
• The framers thought the people of the US were too
  stupid to pick the president (also, they wanted
  to ensure Washington won)
• Each state has the same number of electors as the
  number of seats in congress (DC has three also)
• This totals 538
• You need 270 to win the presidency
• The state legislatures are free to choose the way
  electors are selected
• IN THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE, MAJORITY IS NEEDED
• If a candidate does not receive the 270 needed,
  or if there is a tie, the U.S. House picks the
  president and the Senate picks the V.P.

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• Running for Congress
• Know that Incumbents have a HUGE advantage over
  any challenger. Many seats are known as safe
  seats to the parties
• There is more competition in a Senate race
  (usually)
• In presidential years, and with a popular
  president, the coattail effect plays into the
  race
• The House Races
• 95 of incumbents usually win (even with the big
  year for the Dems in 2006, 94.1 of incumbents
  were reelected!)
• They usually face no competition in the primaries
• The money that incumbents have and the perks
  (like travel allowances, staffs, and the franking
  privilege) help.
• The only time you see big changes is every ten
  years when redistricting happens
• The Senate Races
• Senate races are starting to mirror presidential
  electionsbig money, big staffs, lots of TV
  commercials, debates, etc

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• Running for President
• Stage 1 The Nomination
• To win the nomination, you must win delegates in
  the primaries
• These primaries are staggered all over the
  country on different dates
• Primaries have two features
• Beauty contest- this is where voters indicate
  the candidate they prefect, but do
• not actually elect delegates
• 2. Actual Voting - Voters actually vote for
  delegates to pledge to a candidate
• These features produced the following system
• Proportional representation- of vote gives of
  delegates
• Winner Take All- self explanatory
• Delegate selection- delegates are free to use
  their own judgment at the convention (Republicans
  in IL and NY use this)
• Delegate Selection and Separate Presidential
  Poll- Vote for presidential candidate and the
  delegates

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• Caucuses
• It is a meeting of party members and the oldest
  method of choosing delegates
• These are dangerous because you MUST appeal to
  the party base to win
• Stage 2 The Convention
• Write the party platform (statement of views on
  public policy)
• Nominate the VP (usually done to balance the
  ticket)
• Stage 3 The General Election
• It use to be that campaigning between the
  convention and Labor Day did not happennot any
  more
• Debates
• They usually agree on three debates (one VP
  debate)
• VERY REGULATED and everything down to the
  temperature of the water is agreed upon

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• Money in U.S. Elections
• When you run for office, money usually comes from
  5 different sources
• Yourself
• Political parties
• Individuals
• Interest groups
• Government
• People and groups give interested money. This
  is money given in hopes of influencing the
  outcome of the election thus influencing policy
• Efforts of reform
• There are 3 basic strategies that reformers have
  used
• impose limitations on giving, receiving, and
  spending political money
• requiring public disclosure of the sources and
  uses of political money
• giving governmental subsides to presidential
  candidates, campaigns, and
• parties
• In 1971 Congress pass the FECA and limited the
  amount that candidates could spend on ads,
  required disclosures and required PACs to
  register with the government and weve talked
  about the 2002 Campaign Finance Reforms
  (McCain-Feingold Bill)

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• New is the idea of Issue Advocacy Advertising
• These are paid for by interest groups, not
  candidates, and usually do not come out and say
  vote for or vote against
• There is little or no accountability for this
  kind of advertising
• Candidates Personal Wealth
• Legislation cannot ban individual candidates from
  using their own moneyit would be
  unconstitutional
• Independent Expenditures
• Groups (who most be 100 independent of the
  candidates) may raise and spend money to help a
  candidate win or defeat a candidates
• CONTINUING PROBLEMS WITH CAMPAIGN FINANCE
• Rising cost of campaigns
• declining competition
• increasing dependence on PACS and wealthy donors

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• Interest Groups
• Have become very popular in recent years because
  of issue advocacy
• This is where a group spends unlimited money
  and creates ads that cannot use words like vote
  for
• The framers called them factions

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• There are specific types of interest groups
• Economic Interest Groups (guess what they deal
  with)
• Business Coke, McDonalds, Ford, Microsoft, etc
• Trade and Other Associations not really unions
• National Association of Realtors
• Labor- Unions
• VERY popular in the 1930s-1970s
• Two types
• Open shop- union membership cannot be required
• Closed shop- union membership may be required of
  employment
• Teamsters, AFL, CIO
• Typically back Democratic Party Candidates
• Professional Associations
• America Medical Association
• National Education Association

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• Ideological or Single-Issue Interest Groups
• NRA, PETA, ACLUthey take one issue and run with
  it
• Public Interest Groups
• These groups goal is to help the American (or
  world) public as a whole
• Greenpeace and some tax-exempt charities are
  examples
• Foreign Policy Interest Groups
• Deal with foreign policy and interest
• American-Israel Political Action Committee
• Government and Government Employee Interest
  Groups
• Many cities and states have lobbyists and hire
  lobbyist to present them
• Another group is the nation Governors Association
• Other Interest Groups
• Fall into other category
• VFW, Nationality groups, etc

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• Characteristics and Power of Interest Groups
• SIZE AND RESOURCE
• Mostly deals with money and manpower
• COHESIVNESS
• Members are usually one of three types
• Full-time, paid, formal leaders of group
• People intensely involved in the group, attend
  meetings, pay dues, and lots of work
• Members in name only (this is sometimes tricky
  for politicans)
• LEADERSHIP
• Sometimes makes or breaks a group (are they
  reaching out to all members?)

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• TECHNIQUES
• Publicity and Mass Media Appeals
• TV ads, signs, word of mouth,
• Mass Mailings
• Now being done by email
• Influence on rule makings
• Everything done in Congress is place in the
  official document called the Federal Registers
• Well, groups see this and put pressure on
  agencies to ensure regulations are being carried
  out
• Litigation
• Lawsuit
• Election Activities
• Ads, voting campaigns, money

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• Forming a Political Party
• Green Party is a good example
• Cooperative Lobbying
• Two groups work together to get something done

• INFLUENCE OF LOBBYIST
• Lobbying is when you try to influence public
  officials
• Called lobbyist because they use to stand in the
  lobby of the Capitol
• VERY POWERFUL some companies spend millions on
  lobbyist
• Lobbyist dealing with different groups
  networkedit is called an iron triangle

Congressional Committees
Interest Groups
Government Agencies (departments)
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• MONEY AND POLITICS
• PACs (Political Action Committees) have become
  the financial arm of interest groups
• They are legally able to get money on a
  voluntary basis from members, employees, etc
  and take that money and use it for campaign
  contributions
• THEY HAVE BECOME INCREDITBALLY POWERFUL with over
  4000 PACs working right now
• They use most of their money and give it to
• Incumbents
• Committee chairs
• Party leaders
• Both parties (majority and minority)

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• McCAIN-FEIDGOLD BILL
• The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 was
  passed
• Called the McCain-Feingold Bill
• Raised individual limits to a candidate from
  1000 to 2300 (2008) per election cycle
• Raised individual limits to a party from 20,000
  to 28,500 per election cycle
• Left PAC limit the same (5,000)
• Banned most forms of soft money to political
  parties
• However, soft money has moved to 527 groups and
  have seen their impact increase

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The Difference between a PAC and a 527 A PAC can
accept no more than 5000. It can give up to
5000 to a candidate, and can run ads saying
whatever it wants. A 527 group can accept an
unlimited amount of money, but it can't give
money directly to a candidate, coordinate with a
candidate, or run ads that say "vote for" or
"defeat" a particular candidate. But, these
groups run ads that are far more damaging to
candidates that what most PACs run. And many
campaign consultants and staff have moved between
candidate campaigns and 527 groups, making the
claim that they don't coordinate pretty
questionable.
McCain-Feingold really it only banned political
parties from raising soft money One of the big
critiques of the bill at the time it passed was
that soft money would simply move from the
parties to these outside 527 groups. The
proponents of McCain-Feingold thought this
wouldn't happen because politicians would no
longer be asking for the money.
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• Media and American Politics
• THE INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIA ON POLITICS
• Newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, films,
  recoding, books, electronic communication are all
  grouped into MASS MEDIA
• The News Media is the mass media that focuses on
  the news
• Some news programs do have entertainment value
  (20/20, Oprah, Larry King, Hannity and Combs,
  etc)
• The mass media appeals to a large audience

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• THE MEDIA AND PUBLIC OPINION
• FACTORS THAT LIMIT MEDIA INFLUENCE ON PUBLIC
  OPINION
• Political Socialization
• TV especially influences our values and attitudes
• TV has much more emotional impact than that of
  radio or print media
• Selectivity
• People use selective exposure which conforms to
  their personal bias
• (i.e. Republicans watch Fox News)
• On top of that they use selective perception or
  the way in which we perceive what they want in
  media messages
• Needs
• You follow the news that is important to you
  (unless you are a political junkie)

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• Recall and Comprehension
• The audience sometimes cannot recall stories or
  comprehend how important they really are
• Audience Fragmentation
• We are in a time that does not have any one media
  sources weakened.
• People use different press outlets and these
  outlets cover politics in different ways

• PUBLIC OPINION
• The medias influence on public opinion has two
  important influences
• 1. Agenda setting
• The media calls the publics attention to certain
  issuesthe issues the press wants to cover
• 2. Issue Framing
• Politicians try and get their spin into the
  media so they seem to win arguments

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• THE MEDIA AND VOTER CHOICE
• The Horse Race
• The media loves a close race
• When you have a horse race, usually the issues
  play a more important role
• Negative Advertising
• Even though voters say they hate negative ads,
  consultants still say they work
• Information About Issues
• The media is turning to civic leaders for help
  informing voters
• Making A Decision
• The media is more likely to impact the primaries
  more
• Election Night Reporting
• Ask Al Gore
• THE MEDIA AND GOVERNANCE
• The president can call the press and usually get
  want he wants (prime time speech, etc)
• Parties in Congress have the floor leaders and
  whips
• The court rarely talks to the press