copyright © 2011 pearson education, inc. publishing as … · copyright © 2011 pearson education,...


Chapter 8: Political Parties

• The Meaning of Party

• The Party in the Electorate

• The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington

• The Party in Government: Promises and Policy

• Party Eras in American History

• Third Parties: Their Impact on American Politics

• Understanding Political Parties

• Summary


Chapter Outline and Learning

Objectives


• LO 8.1: Identify the functions that political

parties perform in American democracy.


• LO 8.2: Determine the significance of party

identification in America today.



Objectives

• The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington

• LO 8.3: Describe how political parties are organized in the United States.

• The Party in Government: Promises and Policy

• LO 8.4: Evaluate how well political parties generally do in carrying out their promises.



Objectives


• LO 8.5: Differentiate the various party eras

in American history.

• Third Parties: Their Impact on American

Politics

• LO 8.6: Assess both the impact of third

parties on American politics and their

limitations.



Objectives


• LO 8.7: Evaluate the advantages and

disadvantages of responsible party

government.

The Meaning of Party LO 8.1: Identify the functions that political

parties perform in American democracy.

• Tasks of the Parties

• Parties, Voters, and Policy: The

Downs Model

To Learning Objectives Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman


The Meaning of Party

• Political Party

• A “team of men [and women] seeking to

control the governing apparatus by gaining

office in a duly constituted election.”

• 3 parts of a political party

• Party in the electorate

• Party as an organization

• Party in government

LO 8.1

To Learning Objectives



• Tasks of the Parties

• Pick Candidates

• Run Campaigns

• Give Cues to Voters

• Articulate Policies

• Coordinate Policymaking

LO 8.1




• Parties, Voters, and Policy: The

Downs Model

• Rational-choice theory – People act in

their own best interest, weighing the costs

and benefits of possible alternatives.

• Downs Model – (1) Voters want policies

they favor adopted by government, and (2)

parties want to win elected office.

LO 8.1


LO 8.1


The Party in the Electorate LO 8.2: Determine the significance of party

identification in America today.

• Party Image

• The voter’s perception of what the

Republicans or Democrats stand for, such

as conservatism or liberalism.

• Party Identification

• A citizen’s self-proclaimed preference for

one party or the other.


LO 8.2



The Party in the Electorate

• Ticket Splitting

• Voting with one party for one office and

with another party for other offices.

• It has become the norm in American voting

behavior.

LO 8.2


The Party Organizations: From the

Grass Roots to Washington LO 8.3: Describe how political parties are

organized in the United States.

• Local Parties

• The 50 State Party Systems

• The National Party Organizations




Grass Roots to Washington

• Local Parties

• Party Machines – Political party organization that relies heavily on material inducements to win votes and to govern.

• Patronage – A job, promotion or contract given for political reasons rather than merit; used by party machines.

LO 8.3


LO 8.3





• The 50 State Party Systems

• Closed primaries – People who have registered with the party can vote for party’s candidates.

• Open primaries – Voters decide on Election Day to vote in the Democrat or Republican primary.

• Blanket primaries – A list of candidates from all parties.

LO 8.3





• National Party Organizations

• National Convention – Meeting of party delegates every four years to choose a presidential ticket and the party’s platform.

• National Committee – Keep party operating between conventions.

• National Chairperson – Day-to-day activities of the party.

LO 8.3


The Party in Government: Promises and

Policy LO 8.4: Evaluate how well political parties

generally do in carrying out their promises.

• Party in Government

• Elected officials who call themselves members of the party.

• Coalition

• Individuals and groups that support the political party.

• Promises and Policies

• Parties translate their platform promises into public policy.


LO 8.4



Party Eras in American History LO 8.5: Differentiate the various party eras

in American history.

• 1796–1824: The First Party System

• 1828–1856: Jackson and the

Democrats Versus the Whigs

• 1860–1928: The Two Republican Eras

• 1932–1964: The New Deal Coalition

• 1968–Present: Southern Realignment

and the Era of Divided Party

Government



Party Eras in American History

• Party Eras

• Periods in which a majority of votes cling to party in power.

• Critical Election

• Electoral “earthquake” where new issues and new coalitions emerge

• Party Realignment

• Displacement of majority party by the minority party, usually during a critical election.

LO 8.5




• 1796–1824: The First Party System

• Federalist Party was the first political party

and capitalists supported the Federalists.

• Democratic-Republican Party derived its

coalition from agrarian interests and

dominated the era after the 1800 election.

LO 8.5




• 1828–1856: Jackson and the

Democrats Versus the Whigs

• Democrats coalition included Westerners,

Southerners, new immigrants, and settled

America.

• Whigs coalition included Northern

industrialists and Southern planters.

• Democrats dominated this era.

LO 8.5




• 1860–1928: The Two Republican Eras

• The main issue of the election of 1860 was

slavery.

• The main issue of the election of 1896 was

the economy.

• Republicans dominated both party eras by

forming new coalitions and winning both

elections.

LO 8.5


LO 8.5




• 1932–1964: New Deal Coalition

• A coalition forged by the Democrats, who

dominated American politics from the

1930s to the 1960s.

• Its basic elements were the urban working

class, ethnic groups, Catholics and Jews,

the poor, Southerners, African Americans,

and intellectuals.

LO 8.5


LO 8.5






Government

• 1987 Southern delegates – 77 of 116

House seats, and 6 of 22 Senate seats

were from GOP.

• 2009 Southern delegates – 70 of 131

House seats, and 15 of 22 Senate seats

were from GOP.

LO 8.5




• 1968–Present: Southern Realignment and the Era of Divided Party Government

• Divided government – When one party controls the White House and the other party controls one or both houses of Congress.

• Both houses of Congress and the presidency have been controlled by the same party for just 14 of the 44 years from 1969 to 2012.

LO 8.5






Government

• Party dealignment – The gradual

disengagement of people from the parties,

as seen in part by shrinking party

identification.

LO 8.5


Third Parties: Their Impact on

American Politics LO 8.6: Assess both the impact of third

parties on American politics and their

limitations.

• Third Parties

• Electoral contenders other than the two major parties.

• Three Basic Varieties

• Promote certain causes.

• Splinter parties

• Extension of popular individual with presidential aspirations.


LO 8.6




American Politics

• Third Parties Are Important

• Bring new groups into the electorate.

• Serve as “safety valves” for popular discontent.

• Put many social reforms on the political agenda.

• Bring new issues to the campaign ignored by the major parties.

LO 8.6




American Politics

• Two-Party Governance

• Moderation of political conflict.

• Contributes to political ambiguity.

LO 8.6


Understanding Political Parties LO 8.7: Evaluate the advantages and

disadvantages of responsible party

government.

• Democracy and Responsible Party

Government: How Should We

Govern?

• American Political Parties and the

Scope of Government



Understanding Political Parties

• Democracy and Responsible Party Government: How Should We Govern?

• Responsible party model – A view about how parties should work.

• Party should offer clear choices to the voters, who can then use those choices as cues to their own preferences of candidates.

• Party in government should carry out their campaign promises.

LO 8.7


LO 8.7




• Democracy and Responsible Party

Government: How Should We

Govern? (cont.)

• Blue Dog Democrats – Fiscally

conservative Democrats who are mostly

from the South and rural parts of the

United States, and are resistant to any

domestic policy proposals that would

enlarge the scope of government.

LO 8.7




• American Political Parties and the

Scope of Government

• Lack of uniformity keeps government

small, but also makes cutting government

programs difficult.

• Individual politicians focus on getting more

from government for their own

constituents.

LO 8.7



LO 8.1 Summary


• Political parties are a key linkage between

policymakers and people.

• They operate in the electorate; as

organizations; and in government.

• Political parties pick candidates, run

campaigns, give cues to voters, articulate

policies, and coordinate policymaking between

the branches of government.



The core function of a political party is to

_____________.

A. field candidates for elected office.

B. provide a voting cue to the electorate.

C. try to win elections.

D. organize a national office.

E. guide policymakers’ decisions.

LO 8.1



LO 8.2 Summary


• Party identification is the most important factor

in explaining the political behavior of voters.

• People who do not identify with a party are

political independents, are the crucial swing

voters who can go either way, are more likely

to split their tickets, and are more likely to be

young people.



Party is a citizen’s self-

proclaimed preference for one party or the

other.

A. competition

B. image

C. identification

D. platform

LO 8.2



LO 8.3 Summary

• The Party Organizations: From the


• Political party organizations are decentralized

and fragmented.

• National party can rarely tell state parties what

to do.

• State party organizations have a good deal of

discretion as to how to choose their nominees

for state and local offices.



LO 8.3 Summary

• The Party Organizations: From the

Grass Roots to Washington (cont.)

• Some states have closed primaries and others

have open primaries.

• National convention is supreme power of party,

which nominates the president and vice

president candidates and sets party policy.

• National chairperson guides party activities

between conventions.



The internal organization of political

parties in the United States is best

characterized as __________.

A. hierarchical.

B. fragmented.

C. centralized.

D. rigidly determined.

LO 8.3



LO 8.4 Summary

• The Party in Government: Promises and

Policy

• Political parties affect policy through their

platforms.

• Despite much cynicism about party platforms,

they serve as important roadmaps for elected

officials once they come into office.

• More promises are generally kept than broken.



By and large, American political

have kept most of their platform promises

and translated them into public policy.

A. agendas

B. parties

C. interest groups

D. ideologies

LO 8.4



LO 8.5 Summary


• Throughout American history, one party has

generally been dominant for a substantial

period of time.

• The first party era, from 1796 to 1824, was

dominated by the Democratic-Republicans,

whose agricultural base defeated the business-

oriented Federalists.



LO 8.5 Summary

• Party Eras in American History (cont.)

• The newly formed Democratic Party dominated

from 1828 to 1856 pushing for power for

ordinary individuals.

• The newly formed Republican Party came to

power in 1860 and dominated American

politics through 1928 by first standing firm

against slavery and then successfully

promoting the interests of industrialization.



LO 8.5 Summary

• Party Eras in American History (cont.)

• The Great Depression led to a reversal of party

fortunes, with the Democrats establishing the

New Deal coalition that usually prevailed from

1932 to 1964.

• Since 1968, neither party has been able to

hold the reins of power for long, and a frequent

result has been divided government.



A party dealignment is considered to

be the _________.

A. fragmentation of a political party into splinter parties.

B. loss of party members as more people identify as Independents.

C. loss of party members to the other party.

D. shuffling of party coalitions.

LO 8.5



LO 8.6 Summary

• Third Parties: Their Impact on American

Politics

• Third parties in the United States have brought

new groups into the electorate and have

served as a vehicle for sending a protest

message to the two major parties.

• The American winner-take-all electoral system

makes it hard for third parties to win elections.



Third parties in American politics

typically __________.

A. encourage major party candidates

to take extreme positions.

B. win elections in American politics.

C. promote a broad range of moderate policy ideas.

D. bring new groups into politics.

E. replace one of the two major parties during realignments.

LO 8.6



LO 8.7 Summary


• Responsible party government is that parties

offer clear policy choices which generate

clearly identifiable outcomes.

• That is, at least in theory, parties say what they

plan to do and once in office carry out these

plans.



LO 8.7 Summary

• Understanding Political Parties (cont.)

• The main disadvantage is that the party

discipline necessary for a party to carry out its

pledges requires members of the party in

government to toe the line without regard to

constituency preferences.

• Individualism in American politics would be

stifled by a true responsible government.



According to the responsible party model,

parties should offer _________.

A. clear choices to the voters.

B. money and national health care to the voters.

C. jobs, promotions, and rewards to the voters.

D. inducements and contracts to the voters.

LO 8.7



Text Credits

• Courtesy of Pew Research Center.


Photo Credits

• 224: AP Photo

• 225T: Matt Brewer Hamilton

• 224TC: Bettmann/Corbis

• 224TB: Toles 2000, Washington Post. Reprinted with permission of Universal

Press Syndicate

• 224B: Neo Images/PhotoEdit

• 228: Matt Brewer Hamilton

• 232: Jean Claude Lejeune

• 230: Bettmaann/Corbis

• 234: Toles 2000, Washington Post. Reprinted with permission of Universal Press

Syndicate

• 239: The Granger Collection

• 243: Neo Images/PhotoEdit

• 247: Robert Mankoff/The New Yorker Cartoon/www.cartoonbank.com

copyright © 2011 pearson education, inc. publishing as … · copyright © 2011 pearson education,...

Documents