Urban Political Urban Political Machines & their Machines & their

DeclineDecline

• Extent• Reform• Other Forces • Impact

HAVE URBAN POLITICAL HAVE URBAN POLITICAL MACHINES REALLY MACHINES REALLY

DISAPPEARED?DISAPPEARED?

Four elements of machines (in addition to patronage)

Four changes in the practice of machine politics

Four Elements of Machines Four Elements of Machines (in addition to (in addition to patronagepatronage or or

material rewards)material rewards)

Disciplined hierarchy – led by single boss

Party controls nomination to public office

Party leadership does not hold public office

Loyalty maintained by a mixture of non-ideological and psychic rewards

Tammany Hall Politics Tammany Hall Politics revolves around boss revolves around boss Richard Croker (1889) (1889)

Four Changes in Practices of Four Changes in Practices of Machine Politics Machine Politics

Racial divisions fracture hierarchy

Patronage less importantNew immigrants less dependent

on machinesNew institutions take functions of

central city machines

DECLINE OF MACHINE DECLINE OF MACHINE POLITICSPOLITICS

EXTENTREFORM OTHER FORCES IMPACT

Reforming the Machines Out Reforming the Machines Out of Businessof Business

Social dimensions of Reformers

Programs of structural reforms

Reformers and Bosses: Social Reformers and Bosses: Social Dimensions Dimensions

View of social reformers as “morning glories”Conflicts between reformers and bosses

◦Immigrants looked on politics from personal perspective

◦Upper-middle class reformers looked on politics as arena to realize broad moral principles

◦Differences in ethos: public regarding vs private regarding

Social Reformers ◦Concern with abuses of capitalist system◦Example: (Hazen Pingree – Detroit)

Goals/Programs of Structural Goals/Programs of Structural Reformers Reformers

Goal: efficiency (as contrasted with anti-capitalism of reformers◦Example: (Grover Cleveland –

Buffalo)Core programs

◦Merit appointments◦Privatization

Notable Innovations (electoral Notable Innovations (electoral machinery) of the Urban machinery) of the Urban

Structural ReformersStructural Reformers

Direct primariesAt-large electionsShort ballotNon-partisan elections

DECLINE OF MACHINE DECLINE OF MACHINE POLITICSPOLITICS

EXTENTREFORM OTHER FORCES IMPACT

Other Forces and the Decline Other Forces and the Decline of Machinesof Machines

Federal government

Demography

Federal Government and Federal Government and Decline of the Urban Political Decline of the Urban Political

Machines Machines Welfare politics empowers the federal government◦Magnitude of resources involved

beyond the capabilities of municipalities◦thought of as a legal right

Infrastructure development favors a national focus◦Equity between cities/regions◦Again, magnitude of resources problem

Courts

Demographics and the Demographics and the Decline of Urban Political Decline of Urban Political

MachinesMachinesMinority migration pressures machines to become more inclusive

Westward drift increases proportion of population in urban areas lacking machine tradition

Rise of suburbia◦Lack machine tradition◦Suburbanites focus on their careers

rather than on patronage from machines

Decline of the Urban Decline of the Urban Machine Machine

EXTENT REFORM OTHER FORCES IMPACT

Impact of the Urban Political Impact of the Urban Political Machine’s Decline: Machine’s Decline:

InstitutionsInstitutions

Kinds of cities that favor reform style of government◦Strong mayor (Chicago) ◦Council – manager (Dallas/San

Diego) ◦Commission (Galveston, Texas)

Other Impacts of the Urban Other Impacts of the Urban Political Machine’s DeclinePolitical Machine’s Decline

Class bias of political reformFragmentation and the decrease

of accountability