1. “There are TWO sides to every story!”

2. What IS a Political Party? A political party is an organization made up of people who share similar ideas about the way the country should be governed. Democrats are represented by the donkey.

3. What IS a Political Party? In the United States, we have a 2-party system in which 2 major parties compete for control of the government. They are the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. Republicans are represented by the elephant.

4. Important Vocabulary Terms Ideology: An idea or a way of thinking that is shared by a group or culture. Ex: Republican ideology favors lower taxes and less government spending on welfare programs.

5. Why do we have Political Parties? Creates a balance between political ideologies so that our leaders don’t become too extreme.

6. Why do we have Political Parties? Encourages moderate views and provides government stability.

7. Why do we have Political Parties? To nominate and elect candidates who are qualified for government offices. WIN! WIN! WIN!

8. The Political Party Spectrum

9. DEMOCRATS

10. The Political Party Spectrum DEMOCRATS

11. The Political Party Spectrum DEMOCRATS REPUBLICANS

12. The Political Party Spectrum DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS

13. The Political Party Spectrum Radical DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS

14. The Political Party Spectrum Radical DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS Extreme or Revolutionary changes.

15. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. Liberal DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS

16. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolutionary changes. Liberal. DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS Supports civil liberties, promotes social change

17. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. Liberal- supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS

18. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. Liberal- supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS Opposed to extreme views or measures.

19. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. Conservative Liberal- supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate- opposed to extreme views or measures. DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS

20. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. ConservativeLiberal- supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate- opposed to extreme views or measures. DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS Tends to oppose change, favors traditional views and values.

21. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. Reactionary Conservative- Tends to oppose change, favors traditional views and values. Liberal- Supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate- Opposed to extreme views or measures. DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS

22. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. ReactionaryConservative -Tends to oppose change, favors traditional views and values. Liberal- supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate- opposed to extreme views or measures. DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS Especially opposes progress or change.

23. The Political Party Spectrum Radical- Extreme or Revolution ary changes. Reactionary- Especially opposes progress or change. Conservative- Tends to oppose change, favors traditional views and values. Liberal- supports civil liberties, promotes social change. Moderate- opposed to extreme views or measures. DEMOCRATSREPUBLICANS Most voters fall in the moderate range

24. A Brief History of Political Parties The first two political parties were the FEDERALISTS and the ANTI- FEDERALISTS.

25. A Brief History of Political Parties This stemmed from the debate over the issues surrounding the ratification of the new Constitution (i.e. addition of the Bill of Rights)

26. A Brief History of Political Parties During the debate over slavery in the 1850’s two parties, the Democrats and the Republicans, began to form.

27. What About Third Parties? There is no law requiring any number of political parties.

28. What About Third Parties? Therefore, smaller “third parties” exist to introduce new ideas and concerns overlooked by the Democrats and Republicans.

29. What About Third Parties? Ex: The Green Party advocates environmental protection. They usually are tied to a single issue, political belief or candidate.

30. What About Third Parties? These parties tend to be found on the ends of the political spectrum. They usually are tied to a single issue, political belief or candidate.

31. What do Political Parties do? Select and support candidates running for office. Help candidates win elections by working for their campaigns.

32. What do Political Parties do? Educate the electorate on campaign issues so that citizens can participate in the political process. Monitoring actions of office-holders to make sure they are staying in line with party beliefs.

33. What do Political Parties do? Carry messages to the government to support party ideologies.