2.  Political Party: A group of people that try to control and influence the government by getting people elected to political office  Major Party: Political parties that are supported by a large number of people and have significant influence the government  Minor Party: A political party that is not supported by a large number of people

4.  In the United States, our major parties are REPUBLICANS and DEMOCRATS  Political ideology:  Republicans: tend to be more conservative  Democrats: tend to be more liberal

6.  All value personal rights, freedoms  Educational opportunities for all  Economic opportunities for all  Government duty- to protect nation  Preserve environment  Help citizens

7.  Disagree on ways to meet goals  Example:  Democrats- government directly helps the poor  Republicans- government helps economy and poor get jobs

8.  Political parties are NOT mentioned in the Constitution  But, America has a TWO PARTY SYSTEM, meaning there are two major parties that have most of the influence in our government  Benefits of a two party system:  Stability  Continuity  Why do we have a two party system?  Started with Federalists and Anti Federalists  Once two major viewpoints were established, we naturally evolved to a 2 party system- and now, its all that we know  It is difficult for a minor party to be successful in elections

9.  Over time, symbols have been associated with the political parties  Originally, the parties did not CHOOSE their symbols  Political cartoonists started using them as a way to poke fun at the parties  Thomas Nast was actually the cartoonist responsible for the creation of these animals in his political cartoons. Nast’s cartoons were published in Harper’s Weekly, and he is considered the man behind these symbols

11.  What are some negative connotations/perceptions that can be associated with:  The Donkey  The elephant  What about positive connotations?