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Ch 8 Political Parties I.The Meaning of Party II.The Party in the Electorate III.The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington IV.The Party in Government: Promises and Policy V.Party Eras in American History VI.Third Parties: Their Impact on American Politics VII.Understanding Political Parties VIII.Summary

I. The Meaning of Party A.Definition of Party B.3 Parts of a Political Party C.Tasks of the Parties D.Parties, Voters, and Policy: The Downs Model

I. The Meaning of Party A.Political Party 1.A “team of men [and women] seeking to control the governing apparatus by gaining office in a duly constituted election.” B.3 parts of a political party 1.Party in the electorate 2.Party as an organization 3.Party in government

I. The Meaning of Party C.Tasks of the Parties 1.Pick Candidates 2.Run Campaigns 3.Give Cues to Voters 4.Articulate Policies 5.Coordinate Policymaking

I. The Meaning of Party D.Parties, Voters, and Policy: The Downs Model 1.Rational-choice theory – People act in their own best interest, weighing the costs and benefits of possible alternatives. 2.Downs Model – (1) Voters want policies they favor adopted by government, and (2) parties want to win elected office.

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II. The Party in the Electorate A.Party Image 1.The voter’s perception of what the Republicans or Democrats stand for, such as conservatism or liberalism. B.Party Identification 1.A citizen’s self-proclaimed preference for one party or the other.

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II. The Party in the Electorate C.Ticket Splitting 1.Voting with one party for one office and with another party for other offices. 2.It has become the norm in American voting behavior.

III. The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington A.Local Parties B.The 50 State Party Systems C.The National Party Organizations

III. The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington A.Local Parties 1.Party Machines – Political party organization that relies heavily on material inducements to win votes and to govern. 2.Patronage – A job, promotion or contract given for political reasons rather than merit; used by party machines.

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III. The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington B.The 50 State Party Systems 1.Closed primaries – People who have registered with the party can vote for party’s candidates. 2.Open primaries – Voters decide on Election Day to vote in the Democrat or Republican primary. 3.Blanket primaries – A list of candidates from all parties.

III. The Party Organizations: From the Grass Roots to Washington C.National Party Organizations 1.National Convention – Meeting of party delegates every four years to choose a presidential ticket and the party’s platform. 2.National Committee – Keep party operating between conventions. 3.National Chairperson – Day-to-day activities of the party.

IV. The Party in Government: Promises and Policy A.Party in Government 1.Elected officials who call themselves members of the party. B.Coalition 1.Individuals and groups that support the political party. 1.Caucuses C.Promises and Policies 1.Parties translate their platform promises into public policy.

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IV. The Party in Government: Promises and Policy D.Party Platforms 1.Democratic Platform a) platform#finance-reformhttp:// platform#finance-reform 2.Republican Platform a) content/uploads/2012/08/2012GOPPlatform.pdfhttp:// content/uploads/2012/08/2012GOPPlatform.pdf

V. Party Eras in American History A.Party Eras 1.Periods in which a majority of votes cling to party in power. B.Critical Election 1.Electoral “earthquake” where new issues and new coalitions emerge C.Party Realignment 1.Displacement of majority party by the minority party, usually during a critical election.

V. Party Eras in American History D.Various Party Eras –1824: The First Party System –1856: Jackson and the Democrats Versus the Whigs –1928: The Two Republican Eras –1964: The New Deal Coalition –Present: Southern Realignment and the Era of Divided Party Government

V. Party Eras in American History –1824: The First Party System a)Federalist Party was the first political party and capitalists supported the Federalists. b)Democratic-Republican Party derived its coalition from agrarian interests and dominated the era after the 1800 election

V. Party Eras in American History –1856: Jackson and the Democrats Versus the Whigs a)Democrats coalition included Westerners, Southerners, new immigrants, and settled America. b)Whigs coalition included Northern industrialists and Southern planters. c)Democrats dominated this era.

V. Party Eras in American History –1928: The Two Republican Eras a)The main issue of the election of 1860 was slavery. b)The main issue of the election of 1896 was the economy. c)Republicans dominated both party eras by forming new coalitions and winning both elections.

V. Party Eras in American History –1964: New Deal Coalition a)A coalition forged by the Democrats, who dominated American politics from the 1930s to the 1960s. b)Its basic elements were the urban working class, ethnic groups, Catholics and Jews, the poor, Southerners, African Americans, and intellectuals.

V. Party Eras in American History –Present: Southern Realignment and the Era of Divided Party Government a)1987 Southern delegates – 77 of 116 House seats, and 6 of 22 Senate seats were from GOP. b)2009 Southern delegates – 70 of 131 House seats, and 15 of 22 Senate seats were from GOP. c)Divided government – When one party controls the White House and the other party controls one or both houses of Congress. d)Both houses of Congress and the presidency have been controlled by the same party for just 14 of the 44 years from 1969 to e)Party dealignment – The gradual disengagement of people from the parties, as seen in part by shrinking party identification.

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VI. Third Parties: Their Impact on American Politics A.Third Parties 1.Electoral contenders other than the two major parties. B.Three Basic Varieties 1.Promote certain causes. 2.Splinter parties 3.Extension of popular individual with presidential aspirations.

VI. Third Parties: Their Impact on American Politics C.Third Parties Are Important 1.Bring new groups into the electorate. 2.Serve as “safety valves” for popular discontent. 3.Put many social reforms on the political agenda. 4.Bring new issues to the campaign ignored by the major parties.

VI. Third Parties: Their Impact on American Politics D.Two-Party Governance 1.Moderation of political conflict. 2.Contributes to political ambiguity.

VI. Understanding Political Parties A.Democracy and Responsible Party Government: How Should We Govern? B.American Political Parties and the Scope of Government

VI. Understanding Political Parties A.Democracy and Responsible Party Government: How Should We Govern? 1.Responsible party model – A view about how parties should work. 2.Party should offer clear choices to the voters, who can then use those choices as cues to their own preferences of candidates. 3.Party in government should carry out their campaign promises. 4.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.

VI. Understanding Political Parties B.American Political Parties and the Scope of Government 1.Lack of uniformity keeps government small, but also makes cutting government programs difficult. 2.Individual politicians focus on getting more from government for their own constituents.