AGENDA Mini mock-election Notes Political Cartoon

Two candidates are running from office. They are each from a different political party. Their job is to try to get as many votes as possible in 5 minutes. They will start off with a political campaign group to help them out. At the end, the candidate with the most votes wins does not have to take Friday’s quiz!

How did candidates “get” votes? Did they promise anything in return for a vote?

PREDICTION “Urban Political Machine” What do you think this term means?

Urban Political Machines And the Reformer’s Response

In the mid-19th century, American cities grew rapidly, fueled by immigration and an increase in manufacturing and commerce.

Immigrants arrived with great needs and few resources.

Party organizations in these growing cities, known as political machines, offered immigrants help in exchange for political support. Political Machine – an organized group that controls a political party in a city and offers services to voters and businesses in exchange for political & financial support.

Political Machine Key Terms Graft – illegal use of political influence for personal gain Patronage – giving government jobs to people who helped a candidate get elected

Loyal voters and party workers might receive patronage jobs, money or food in times of distress.

Machine politicians controlled access to public jobs and contracts through a system of corruption. Schemes were common.

Real estate interests, public works builders, and aspiring judges often paid large sums of money to machine politicians to win offices, favors, and city contracts.

Some political machines fixed elections by stuffing or destroying ballot boxes in districts where the opposition was popular - although often had majority support without such methods.

Tweed Ring Scandal William Tweed (aka Boss Tweed) became the head of Tammany Hall –Tammany Hall was New York City’s most powerful political machine Between , Boss Tweed led the Tweed Ring (a group of corrupt politicians) in defrauding the city. –Example of a scheme involving graft (illegal use of political influence for personal gain ): New York County Courthouse actual cost was $3 million, Tweed used $13 million of city funds for this “project,” - $10 went to Tweed and his ring Tweed Ring broken up in 1871 & Tweed arrested

Reformers opposed the machine. Called for: - civil service tests for jobs - closer control over how city spends money - watching the polls on Election Day

Pendleton Civil Service Act – 1883, authorized a bipartisan (both major parties) commission to make appointments to federal jobs through a merit-based system (based on a candidate’s performance, such as on an exam)

Reforms gradually weakened political machines.

Reformers rarely won elections. Why?

Rise of welfare state & government services after WWII = weakened political machines

Political Cartoon Create a political cartoon that represents your opinion on one of the topics discussed in today’s notes. Include: Visual (shaded in black/white or fully colored) Title Written explanation of what your political cartoon means.