Political Parties What/Who are they? What are their roles? How are they organized? What do they believe in?

I. WHAT is a Political Party? a. A political party is a group of citizens (voters) with similar views on public issues who work to put their ideas into effective government action and who band together to elect a candidate.

I. WHAT is a Political Party? b. One job of political parties to nominate candidates. That is, to select them to represent their respective political party. c. Parties pick candidates who agree with their beliefs and try to persuade voters to support their candidates for running for office d. REMINDER: The three goals of Political Parties are to: 1. Organize to win elections 2. Operate the gov’t 3. Influence gov’t policy

II. The Political Spectrum a. Generally, parties are often labeled as “liberal” or “conservative”, depending on their views. b. Parties fall somewhere on the political spectrum (a range referring to differences in political views). c. People who fall in the middle are “moderate”, Left Moderate Right “ Liberal ” “ Conservative ”

Warning… Our first President, George Washington, warned against the notion of political parties… "It serves to distract the Public Councils, and enfeeble the Public Administration....agitates the Community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosity of one....against another....it opens the door to foreign influence and corruption...thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to the policy and will of another.“ - Washington’s Farewell Address (1796)

III. Roots of the Two-Party System a. The United States has had its current two-party system since Despite President Washington’s warning, two rival political groups were formed shortly after he was elected. b. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson and Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton were the leaders of these groups.

c. The Original Democratic Party - Thomas Jefferson wanted less power for the national government and more power for the state govt’s, - state gov’t = closer to the citizens - Those who agreed with Jefferson made up the Democratic – Republican Part which later split into the Democratic Party and the Whig Party which eventually evolved into the modern day Republican Party - Are these the views of the Democratic Party TODAY?

d. The Original Republican Party - Alexander Hamilton wanted a strong national gov’t and a strong President - Weak gov’t = individual rights were at risk - Hamilton’s group was called the Federalist Party - Are these the views of the Republican Party TODAY?

IV. Today’s Major Parties a. A basic difference between the major parties is their belief in how much the government should be involved in the lives of Americans b. Today, the Democrats are generally said to be more liberal -Ideas about government: Favor a larger role of government Believe that the government should provide social programs Are not opposed to taxing the people to fund those programs

c. Today, the Republicans are generally said to be more conservative -Ideas about Government: Favor limiting the role of government Believe in reducing the number of government social programs. Are opposed to raising taxes IV. Today’s Major Parties

d. Party Platforms: To know where a party stands on the major issues, the voters can look at the party’s platform.

e. A platform is a list of ideas and issues that are supported by a candidate f. Each individual part of a platform is called a plank g. The platform communicates to voters what the party plans to do if it wins IV. Today’s Major Parties

EXAMPLE: Plank = Immigration Democrat View Favor “comprehensive” immigration reform = bring undocumented immigrants out of shadows and getting them right with the law, learn English, pay taxes and on path to citizenship Deportation of criminals Republican View Strongly endorse legal immigration Strongly oppose illegal immigrants Essential we protect legal citizens’ jobs from illegal immigrants In favor of passing harsh immigration laws against illegal immigrants

-Read the following about the different opinions on both the Republican Platform and the Democrat Platform -Then, categorize them on the correct side of your Venn Diagram

V. Third Parties a. Although they sometimes challenge the two major parties, a Third Party has never won a Presidential election and has rarely won any other major elections.

c. Third Parties, however, can affect the outcome of elections; as well, they may influence government and social policy. d. Some Third Parties arise to promote a social, economic, and moral issue. For example, the Communist and Socialist Parties in America believe that America should adopt the communist and socialist economic structure. V. Third Parties

e. Third Parties rarely win major elections because of the two-party tradition. f. While the names of Republican and Democratic candidates are automatically placed on the ballot, Third-Party candidates must obtain a large number of signatures to get on the ballot.

VI. Types of Third Parties a. Single – Issue parties fade when the issue loses importance or a major party adopts that issue. Ie. The Prohibitionist Party pushed for laws against the sale of alcohol.

b. Ideological parties focus on changing society in major ways Ie. The Green Party opposes the power of corporations and favors decision-making at the grassroots level The Libertarian Party would like to increase individual freedoms by cutting the size of the U.S. government VI. Types of Third Parties