CHAPTER 9

Political Parties
0OBJECTIVES
This chapter examines political parties, with an emphasis on the two-party system that has evolved in the United States. After reading and reviewing the material in this chapter, the student should be able to do each of the following: ! . "efine the term political party and contrast the structures of #uropean and American parties, paying particular attention to the federal structure of the U.S. system and the concept of party identification. $ . Trace the development of the U.S. party system through its four periods. #xplain why parties have been in decline since the %ew "eal. & . "escribe the structure of a ma'or party. "istinguish ma'or from minor parties. ( . )ndicate whether there are ma'or differences between the parties. "escribe some of the issue differences between delegates at "emocratic and *epublican conventions, and compare their policy positions with those of ran+-and-file party members.

0OVERVIEW
A political party exists in three arenas: among the voters who psychologically identify with it, as a grassroots organi,ation staffed and led by activists, and as a group of elected officials who see+ to act on its ideals. This chapter studies the party primarily as an organi,ation that ta+es various forms at the local level. These include the political machine, the ideological party, the solidary group, the sponsored party, and the personal following. %ational parties are wea+ coalitions of these local forums. As organi,ations that influence the political systems, parties are becoming even wea+er. -oters no longer strongly identify with one of the ma'or parties. The spread of the direct primary has made it harder for parties to control who is nominated for elective office, thus ma+ing it harder for the parties to influence the behavior of officeholders they once elected. "elegate selection rules, especially in the "emocratic .arty, have contributed to shifting the center of power away from officeholders and party regulars and toward the parties/ more ideological wings. 0inor parties have arisen from time to time, but the only ones that have affected the outcome of presidential elections have been those that began as splinter groups within one of the ma'or parties. An example of such a party is the 1ull 0oose .rogressives. The two-party system is maintained, and minor parties are discouraged, by an election system of winner-ta+e-all, plurality elections. This arrangement ma+es voters fear that they will 2waste3 their vote if they vote for a minor party. 0eanwhile, the primary system ma+es it possible for minor parties to wield influence through the ma'or parties.

Chapter 9: Political Parties

0CHAPTER OUTLINE WITH KEYED IN RESOURCES0

) . .arties4in the United States and abroad A . "ecentrali,ation ! . A party is a group that see+s to elect candidates to public office by supplying them with a label 5party identification6 by which they are +nown to the electorate. $ . Arenas of politics in which parties exist: a 6 7abel in the minds of the voters b 6 8rgani,ation recruiting and campaigning for candidates c 6 Set of leaders organi,ing and trying to control the legislative and executive branches & . U.S. parties have become wea+er in all three arenas. a 6 As label, because there are more independents and more split-tic+et voting b 6 As set of leaders, though, parties are still somewhat strong. c 6 As organi,ations, parties have become wea+er since !9: s 1 . *easons American and #uropean parties are different ! . #uropean parties are disciplined gate+eepers, to which voters are very loyal, though this has been declining recently. $ . ;ederal system decentrali,es power in United States. a 6 #arly in U.S. history, the most important government decisions were made by the state and local governments, and this is where most of the political 'obs were. b 6 %ational parties in those times were coalitions of local parties. c 6 As political power became more centrali,ed, parties became even more decentrali,ed and wea+er. & . .arties closely regulated by state and federal laws, which wea+en them ( . <andidates are now chosen through primaries, not by party leaders. = . .resident elected separately from <ongress, and presidential appointees are drawn from many sources. )) . The rise and decline of the political party A . The ;ounding 5to !>$ s6 ! . ;ounders disli+ed parties, viewing them as factions. $ . ;or parties to be acceptable, people had to be able to distinguish between policy disputes and challenges to the legitimacy of government. & . #mergence of *epublicans, ;ederalists: ?efferson versus @amilton a 6 7oose caucuses of political notables b 6 *epublicans/ success 5?efferson, 0adison, 0onroe6 and ;ederalists/ demise c 6 *eflection of the newness of parties is seen in the wea+ness of this system. 1 . The ?ac+sonians 5to <ivil Aar6 ! . .olitical participation became a mass phenomenon a 6 0ore voters to be reachedB by !>&$, presidential electors selected by popular vote in most states b 6 .arty built from the bottom up c 6 Abandonment of presidential caucuses composed of congressional members < . The <ivil Aar and sectionalism 5to !9& s6 ! . ?ac+sonian system unable to survive slavery and sectionalism. $ . %ew *epublicans became dominant because of: a 6 <ivil Aar4*epublicans relied on Union pride b 6 1ryan/s alienation of northern "emocrats in !>9: deepened sectionalism & . 0ost states were dominated by one party. a 6 ;actions emerged within each party.

Chapter 9: Political Parties

b 6 *epublicans bro+e into professional politicians 58ld Cuard6 and progressives 5mugwumps6. c 6 .rogressives initially shifted between parties to gain power, but then began attac+ing partisanship when the *epublicans became dominant. " . The era of reform 5beginning in the !9 s, but chiefly since the %ew "eal6 ! . .rogressives pushed measures to curtail parties/ power and influence. a 6 .rimary elections favored, to replace nominating conventions b 6 %onpartisan elections at city and 5sometimes6 state level c 6 %o party-business alliances, on the grounds that they were corrupting d 6 Strict voter registration reDuirements in order to reduce fraud e 6 <ivil service reform in order to eliminate patronage f 6 )nitiative and referendum so that citi,ens could vote directly on proposed legislation $ . #ffects a 6 *educed the worst forms of political corruption b 6 Aea+ened all political parties4parties became less able to hold officeholders accountable or to coordinate across the branches of government # . .arty realignments ! . <ritical or realigning periods: periods when a sharp, lasting shift occurs in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties a 6 )ssues that separate the parties change, so the +inds of voters supporting each party change. b 6 Shift may occur at the time of the election or 'ust after. $ . ;ive realignments so far: a 6 !> 5?effersonian *epublicans defeated ;ederalists6 b 6 !>$> 5?ac+sonian "emocrats came to power6 c 6 !>: 5Ahig party collapsedB *epublicans came to power6 d 6 !>9: 5*epublicans defeated Ailliam ?ennings 1ryan6 e 6 !9&$ 5"emocrats came to office under ;"*6 & . Two +inds of realignments a 6 A ma'or party is defeated so badly that it disappears, and a new party emerges. b 6 Two existing parties continue, but voters shift their loyalty from one to another. ( . <learest cases of realignment: !>: , !>9:, !9&$ a 6 !>: : slavery issue fixed new loyalties in the popular mind b 6 !>9:: economic issues shifted loyalties to #ast versus Aest, city versus farm split c 6 !9&$: economic depression triggered new coalition for "emocrats = . !9> : %ot a new realignment a 6 *eagan won in !9> 4not because of what he stood for, but because he was not ?immy <arter. b 6 <ould not have been a traditional realignment, because <ongress was left in the hands of the "emocrats. : . 0a'or shift in presidential voting patterns in the South a 6 !9E$F$ (: South has been more *epublican than nation as a whole b 6 )f continues, will constitute a ma'or regional realignment ; . .arty decline ! . #vidence that parties are declining, not realigning. $ . .roportion of people identifying with a party declined between !9: and !9> . & . .roportion of those voting a split tic+et increased. a 6 Aas almost unheard of in the nineteenth century, because voters were given ballots by the parties

Chapter 9: Political Parties

b 6 1ecame more common with the adoption of the office-bloc ballot 5listing candidates by office instead of party6 ))) . The national party structure today 5T@#0# A: .A*TG ST*U<TU*# T8"AG6 A . .arties similar on paper !. State and local party organi,ations en'oy a great deal of autonomy from the national party apparatus. They control the process of delegate selection to the national nominating conventions by using primaries to select delegates. )n recent years, there has been a trend where states compete to have their primaries held at the beginning of the delegate-selection process. #arlier primaries force presidential candidates to pay particular attention to these states in order to develop momentum by winning earlier primaries. This has resulted in a front loading of the delegate-selection process that the national parties are helpless to control. $ . %ational convention has ultimate powerB meets every four years to nominate the presidential candidate & . %ational committee is composed of delegates from statesB manages affairs between conventions ( . <ongressional campaign committees support the party/s congressional candidates. = . %ational chair manages daily wor+ 1 . .arty structure diverged in late !9: s and early !9E s ! . *%< moved to bureaucratic structure a 6 1ecame a well-financed party devoted to electing its candidates, especially to <ongress b 6 1eginning in !9> s, *%< used computeri,ed mailing lists to raise money c 6 0oney was used to provide services to candidates d 6 *%< effectively created a national firm of political consultants. $ . "emocrats moved to factionali,ed structure and redistributed power. a 6 "emocrats lost five out of six presidential elections between !9:> and !9>>. b 6 1y the !99 s, "%< had learned from the *%<: adopted the same techniDues, with some success. & . "%< and *%< send money to state parties to sidestep federal spending limits 5soft money6 < . %ational conventions ! . %ational committee sets time and placeB issues a 2call3 setting the number of delegates for each state and the rules for their selection $ . ;ormulas are used to allocate delegates a 6 "emocrats/ formula shifts delegates away from the South, to the %orth and Aest b 6 *epublicans/ formula shifts delegates away from the #ast, to the South and Southwest. c 6 *esult: "emocrats move left, *epublicans right & . "emocratic formula rewards large states, whereas *epublican formula rewards loyal states. ( . "emocrats set new rules a 6 )n !9E s, rules were changed to wea+en local party leaders and increase the proportions of women, youth, blac+s, and %ative Americans attending the conventionB superdelegates b 6 @unt <ommission in !9>! increased the influence of elected officials and made the convention more deliberative = . <onseDuence of reforms: parties represent different sets of upper-middle-class voters a 6 *epublicans represent traditional middle class4more conservative b 6 "emocrats represent more leftist wing of the liberal middle class : . To become more competitive, "emocrats adopted additional rule changes:

Chapter 9: Political Parties

a 6 )n !99$, three rules were set: 5!6 Ainner-reward system of delegate distribution banned4this had previously given the winner of primaries and caucuses extra delegates. 5$6 .roportional representation implemented 5&6 States that violated the rules were penali,ed with the loss of convention delegates. b6 "elegates once selected by party leaders are now chosen by primaries or local caucuses. E . <onventions today only ratify choices made in primary season. )- . State and local parties 5T@#0# 1: U%)T#" STAT#S .A*T)#S AS 1*8A" <8A7)T)8%S6 A . State-level structure ! . State central committee $ . <ounty committees & . -arious local committees ( . "istribution of power varies with the state, because different incentives are at wor+. 1 . The machine ! . "efinition: a party organi,ation that recruits members via tangible incentives 5money, 'obs, political favors6 $ . @igh degree of leadership control over member activity & . Abuses were extensive a 6 Cradually controlled by reforms4voter registration, civil service, @atch Act 5!9&96 b 6 0achines continued until voter demographics and federal programs changed, decreasing the need for the parties/ resources ( . 0achines were both self-serving and public regarding = . %ew machine: uses money to +nit together many politicians, though money comes from campaign contributions, not from patronage and contracts a 6 %ew machines are a blend of the old machine 5regarding campaign finance6 and today/s ideological party traits 5regarding issues6. b 6 0oney once raised by patronage and contracts is now supplied by wealthy contributors and funds raised through direct mail.. < . )deological parties4extreme opposite to machine ! . .rinciple is more important than winning election, so ideological parties are contentious and factionali,ed. $ . Usually outside "emocratic and *epublican parties42third parties3 & . <urrently are generally focused social movements, which advance specific demands ( . .olitical machine was once the 2farm club3 of the national party, but today/s social movements perform that function a 6 ;actionalism is therefore more intense b 6 .arty leaders have less freedom " . Solidary groups ! . 0embers are motivated by solidary incentives 5en'oying the gameB companionship6 $ . Advantage: neither corrupt nor inflexible & . "isadvantage: not very hard wor+ing # . Sponsored parties ! . <reated or sustained by another organi,ation $ . #xample: "etroit "emocrats were developed and led by the United Auto Aor+ers 5UAA6 union & . %ot very common in United States ; . .ersonal following

Chapter 9: Political Parties

! . *eDuires an appealing personality, an extensive networ+, name recognition, and money $ . #xamples: Hennedys 50A6, Talmadges 5CA6, 7ongs 57A6, 1yrds 5-A6 - . The two-party system A . *arity among nations today 1 . #venly balanced nationally, but not locally < . Ahy has the U.S. two-party system endured for so longI ! . #lectoral system4winner-ta+e-all and plurality system limit the number of parties $ . 8pinions of voters4two broad coalitions wor+, although there may be times of bitter dissent & . State laws have made it very difficult for third parties to get on the ballot. -) . 0inor parties 52third parties36 A . )deological parties are not interested in immediate electoral success and thus persist despite losses at the polls. 1 . Two types of parties have been successful in carrying states in presidential elections: ! . #conomic protest parties, which form to protest economic conditions $ . ;actional parties, which form from a split in a ma'or party < . Surprising that more social movements 5for example, the civil rights movement, antiwar movement6 have not produced their own parties ! . They have only a slim chance of success. $ . The ma'or parties accommodate the movements via direct primaries and national party convention. " . )mpact of minor parties on American politics hard to 'udge ! . <onventional wisdom holds that minor parties develop ideas that the ma'or parties adopt. $ . ;actional parties have had probably the greatest influence on public policy. -)) .%ominating a president A . Two contrary forces ! . .arty/s desire to win the presidency motivates it to see+ an appealing candidate. $ . "esire to +eep dissidents in party forces a compromise with more extreme views. 1 . Are the delegates representative of the votersI ! . "emocratic delegates much more liberal $ . *epublican delegates much more conservative & . 8utcome cannot be attributed solely to Duota rules for delegate selection4women, youth, minorities have greater diversity of opinions than do the delegates < . Aho votes in primariesI ! . .rimaries now more numerous and more decisive a 6 Stevenson 5!9=$6 and @umphrey 5!9:>6 won the presidential nomination without entering any primaries b 6 1y !99$: forty primaries and twenty caucuses 5some states with both6 $ . Turnout for primaries is low, yet studies find little evidence to suggest that primary voters have more extreme political views than ran+-and-file party voters. & . <aucus: meeting of party followers at which delegates are pic+ed a 6 8nly the most dedicated partisans attend b 6 8ften choose most ideological candidate: ?ac+son, *obertson in !9>> " . Aho are the new delegatesI ! . Today/s delegates are issue-oriented activists $ . Advantages of this new system: a 6 )ncreased opportunities for activists within the two ma'or parties b 6 "ecreased probability that they will defect from the ma'or parties

Chapter 9: Political Parties

& . "isadvantage: these delegates may nominate presidential candidates unacceptable to voters or even to the party/s ran+-and-file supporters -))) . .arties versus voters A . "emocrats: since !9:>, have won more congressional elections but had little success in presidential contests ! . .residential candidates are out of step with average voters on social and taxation issues. $ . So are "emocratic delegates to the nominating convention, and there is a connection between the delegates/ and the candidate/s positions. 1 . *epublicans had same problem with Coldwater 5!9:(6. < . *an+-and-file "emocrats and *epublicans differ on many political issues, but the differences are usually small. ! . "elegates from the two ma'or parties differ widely on these same issues. $ . Therefore, the candidate needs to share views with the average citi,en or campaign on issues where delegates and voters agree. & . .roblems arise, though, because candidates competing in primaries must often play to the ideological extremes to win delegate support.

0I!PORTANT TER!S
caucus congressional campaign committee critical or realignment period ideological party mugwumps (or progressives) national chairman national committee national convention office-bloc ballot party-column ballot personal following plurality system A meeting of party members to select delegates bac+ing one or another primary candidate A party committee in <ongress that provides funds to members and would-be members .eriod when a ma'or, lasting shift occurs in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties A party that values principled stands on issues above all else *epublican party faction of the !>9 s to the !9! s, composed of reformers who opposed patronage "ay-to-day party managerB elected by the national committee "elegates who run party affairs between national conventions A meeting of party delegates held every four years A ballot listing all candidates of a given office under the name of that officeB also called a 20assachusetts3 ballot A ballot listing all candidates of a given party together under the name of that partyB also called an 2)ndiana3 ballot The political support provided to a candidate on the basis of personal popularity and networ+s An electoral system in which the winner is that person who gets the most votes, even if he or she does not receive a ma'orityB used in almost all American elections A party organi,ation that recruits members by dispensing patronage A group that see+s to elect candidates to public office

political machine political party

Chapter 9: Political Parties

solidary incentive split ticket sponsored party straight ticket superdelegate

The social rewards 5sense of pleasure, status, or companionship6 that lead people to 'oin political organi,ations -oting for candidates of different parties for various offices in the same election A local or state political party that is largely supported by another organi,ation in the community -oting for candidates who are all of the same party .arty leader or elected official who becomes a delegate to the national convention without having to run in primaries or caucuses An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections

two-party system