2.  A team of people seeking to control government by winning elected office.

3.  Party as Organization  Office seekers  Benefit seekers  Party in the Electorate  Democrats, Republicans, and Independents  Party in Government  Party caucuses/conferences/Divided & unified government

5.  Make legislating easier  Mobilize voters/Simplify voter decision- making  Regulate politicians’ ambition  Enforce collective responsibility

6.  Can magnify and harden conflicts  Can oversimplify issues  Can seem to relieve citizens of hard work of self-education

7.  Parties as legislative coalitions 1788-1812  The golden age of parties 1828-1912  Declining parties/Rise of candidates 1912-1972  Era of weak parties 1972-1994  Homogeneous but diffuse parties 1994-2012…

8.  Federalists and Anti-Federalists in the first Congresses

9.  Spoils system  No secret ballot  Politics as entertainment  Grass roots parties  High voter turnout

10.  Australian ballot, secret ballot  Civil service reforms  Primary elections  Direct election of senators  Nonpartisan local elections  New Deal welfare state  More candidate-centered campaigns

11.  TV  Campaign finance  Candidate centered elections  Rise in number of “independents”  Split ticket voting  Deep ideological divisions within parties  (Particularly the Democratic party!)  Weak party discipline in Congress

12.  Ideological realignment & polarization  Strong party discipline in Congress  Highly partisan, competitive presidential elections  Increased turnout  Parties act in coalitional environment

13. Democrats to the LEFT Republicans to the RIGHT