Political Parties

Introduction What are the two major political parties in America? Why do parties exist? Are parties good or bad?

Political Ideologies Ideologies: A cohesive set of ideas and beliefs used to organize and evaluate the political world Conservative: One side of the ideological spectrum defined by support for lower taxes, a free market, and a more limited government Liberal: One side of the ideological spectrum defined by support for stronger governmental programs and more market regulation

Two Parties The Two major political parties are Democrats= more liberal Republicans = more conservative

American Parties are Decentralized In America political parties are decentralized They constitute a loose network or organizations, groups and individuals who share a party label but are under no obligation to work together. Example from today’s Headlinestoday’s Headlines Log Cabin Republicans

Parties and Party Systems There are three parts of the party organization Party Organization- A specific set of workers at the national state and local levels Party in government- the group of elected officials who belong to a specific party Party in the electorate- the group of citizens who identify with a specific political party

Party in Organization Both Parties have a national committee National Committee: An American political parties principle organization with representatives from each state These organizations Run day to day operations Recruit candidates and supporters Work to build consensus on major issues

Constituency groups Constituency: a group of people who support or who are likely to support a politician or political party Each party has groups focused on recruiting specific constituencies such as specific racial and ethnic groups, religious beliefs, senior citizens etc. GOP Hispanics, RNC Women DNC LBGT Community

Party Brand Names Part of the National Committees goal is creating a political “brand” What do you think of when you think Democrats? Positive connotations Negative connotations What do you think of when you think Republicans? Positive connotations Negative connotations

Party in Government Party in Government- the group of elected officials who belong to a specific party In Congress the Democrats and Republicans create formal structures to meet, discuss, debate, assign leadership positions and reach policy consensus on positions The Democrats call their group a caucus The Republicans call their group a Conference

Formal Structures Speaker of the House- elected leader of the House Majority leader- Elected head of party in Power Minority Leader- Elected head of party out of power Majority whip- focuses on party unity Information gathering Information dissemination Coalition building

Mitch McConnell is the Senate Majority Leader (KY-R)

Harry Reid is the Senate Minority Leader (D-NV)

House Speaker is John Boehner (R-OH)

Nancy Pelosi is the House Minority Leader (D-CA)

Polarized Congress Why might a more partisan congress be a problem? Would you support a no compromise candidate?

Party in Electorate

Party Coalition Look at the Party Coalition Chart Who are the Major constituency groups for the democrats? Who are the Major constituency groups for the Republicans?

Party Platforms Party Platforms: is a list of the values and actions which are supported by a political party in order to appeal to the general public, Democrats Republican

Parties and Party Systems ( ) What causes realignment of party systems ? What issues (or potential issues) today do you think could drive a realignment?

How do people vote? What is the Paradox of voting?

Voting Cues Incumbency Partisanship Personal vote Personal characteristics Retrospective evaluation For or against party in power