1. Unit 3, Ch. 9.3:
Political Parties

2. The Role of Political Parties:
Parties are important to our system, it’s the way we nominate, elect, and monitor our representatives. They are organizations that try to elect members to office so that their views can become policy.
Party Ideology: Each party has a basic set of ideas and goals about society and the role of gov. that its members and supporters share. Party ideas and goals are organized into a platform that they will push and determined where they fall on the political spectrum that stretches from the liberal left to the conservative right.

3. The Role of Political Parties:
Liberals generally support government action to change social, political, or economic policies that are believed to be unfair.
Conservatives generally support limited gov., lower taxes, and traditional social values. Moderates exist in each party to find middle ground between parties.

4. Parties’ 3 Main Roles:
Parties play 3 main roles: nominating candidates, assisting the electoral process, and helping to operate the government.
The nomination process (naming candidates for office) is a party’s main function. Parties bring money, campaign workers, and other support to candidates.

5. Parties’ 3 Main Roles:
The electoral process: Each party has a position on major issues, parties educate people about them and motivate them to vote. Parties provide a “brand name”, so when a candidate is affiliated with a party, voters have an indication of their views. Parties help the electorate (voters) learn about issues and the party’s position on them. Lastly, parties watch how officeholders perform, helping them to do the business well, to attract new voters and candidates.

6. Parties’ 3 Main Roles:
Running the Government: In each house of Congress, whichever party is in the majority controls that house. People appointed to the other branches are usually a member of the president’s party. If a president is from one party, and Congress is controlled by the other, parties may provide ways for the branches to work out their differences.

7. The American 2-Party system:
The more parties there are, the smaller the role and influence of any particular party. There are 3 basic types of party systems.
One party: A single political party controls gov. Other parties may or may not be allowed to operate, but they usually have no power.
Two-party system: 2 major parties compete to control gov. Other parties may exist and may affect elections, but rarely have enough support to elect a national leader or control Congress.
Multiparty system: several parties compete for control. This is the most common system. Can lead to instability, so often several parties will form a coalition (alliance) to create a majority.

8. American Political Parties:
The first parties formed in America soon after the Constitution was ratified. Federalists supported larger gov. and the Antifederalists wanted smaller gov. Over time these two parties evolved, and led to the current two (Republicans and Democrats). Third parties have come and gone, and some candidates have run as independents (no party), but often they would just steal votes from their side of the spectrum and ensure the victory of the party on the other end.

9. Party Organization:
Local parties: vary from state to state. The most common is the county party, usually run by committee. This committee is usually selected by party members at the precinct level (the lowest level of electorate), while some cities have used wards (groups of precincts) to elect city council members.
State parties: Run by a central committee made up of county committee representatives. They appoint a chairperson to manage daily operations, and party leaders try to elect candidates in their states.
National parties: headed by a committee of members from the states, they raise funds, support campaigns, and elect candidates.

10. Benefits of Political Parties:
Some believe that the 2 party system helps filter out extreme views since each side tries to attract moderate voters in the middle. Also, since they represent such a broad selection of views, this aids in stability and loyalty of voters to their party. They won’t abandon the party due to a view on one issue.

11. Criticisms of Political Parties:
Some argue that by trying to appeal to so many, parties lack unity and discipline. So they won’t be able to fulfill all of their campaign promises. Others believe that interest groups give money and influence parties to act in ways that benefit narrow interests rather than the larger public good.
Another issue are people who pursue office as a means for their own personal success, saying anything to get elected and flip flopping on issues.