Transcript Political Party - West Ada School District

Political Party
A group of persons who seek to control
government through the winning of
elections and the holding of public
office
Political Party Functions
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Nominate candidates for public office.
Inform and activate supporters.
Act as Bonding Agent.
Govern through partisanship.
Act as watchdog.
Two-Party System
• In the United States today, only candidates
from the two major parties, Democratic and
Republican, have a realistic chance of winning
elections for public office.
Why a Two-Party System in U.S.
• Historical Basis –
Federalists vs. AntiFederalists.
• Force of Tradition – “It’s
always been that way.”
• The Electoral System –
Discourages minor
party success due to
Single-Member
Districts, and election
laws passed through
Bipartisan cooperation.
• American Ideological
Consensus – Shared
ideals, basic principles
and patterns of belief.
Plurality
• In an election, the number
of votes that the leading
candidate obtains over the
next highest candidate.
• The largest number of votes
cast for an office.
Pluralism (Pluralistic society)
• Term used to describe a
society which consists of
several distinct cultures and
groups.
Minor (Third) Parties
•Develop around single issues.
•Goal of influencing people’s opinions
on those issues.
•Must achieve a coalition to govern.
Coalition
• A temporary alliance of several groups who
come together to form a working majority and
so to control a government.
Party Membership Patterns
• Both parties are broadly based to attract as
many voters as possible. So each is composed
of a cross section of U.S. population.
• Certain segments of the electorate tend to be
aligned more solidly with each party, however.
Factors influencing party affiliation
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Family
Major Historical Events
Economic Status
Age
Place of Residence
Education Level
Work Environment
Minor Parties in the U.S.
• Ideological Parties are based on a particular set
of beliefs about social, economic, and political
matters. Libertarian Party
• Single-Issue Parties focus on only one publicpolicy matter. Free Soil Party
• Economic Protest Parties have emerged in times
of economic discontent. Populist Party
• Splinter Parties are parties that have split away
from one of the major parties. Bull Moose Party
Why Minor Parties are important
• Anti-Masons party first used an national
convention to choose a presidential candidate.
• Third party candidate can play the role of
“spoiler” in a closely contested election.
• Play the role of critic and innovator. Bring
controversial, important topics to public
attention. (Progressive income tax, women’s
suffrage, railroad and banking regulation, and
old-age pensions)
Party Organization
• Both major parties are highly decentralized,
fragmented, disjointed, and often beset by
factions and internal squabbling.
Role of the Presidency
• President’s party can be organized from his
office. Access to the media, his popularity,
and power to make appointments and
dispense favors. Other party has no such
leader.
Impact of Federalism
• More than half a million elected offices in the
United States. They are distributed widely
among national, state, and local levels. Such a
decentralized government requires a
decentralized party to win election to those
offices.
Nominating Process
• Nominations for political office are made
within the party. This process pits members of
the same party against one another. Leads to
fragmentation.
National Party Machinery
• National Convention
picks party’s presidential
and vice-pres candidates.
Writes party platform.
• National Committee
handles party’s affairs
between conventions.
• National Chairperson is
the leader of the national
committee.
• Congressional Campaign
Committees are made up
of members of each
house of Congress. Work
to reelect incumbents,
replace retiring members,
and unseat vulnerable
incumbents from the
other party.
State Party Machinery
• Central committee and chairperson work to
further the party’s interests within the state
by building an effective organization,
promoting unity, raising funds, finding
candidates, etc…
Local Party Machinery
• A party unit for each district in which an
elected office is to be filled.
• Ward – Unit into which cities are divided for
election of city council members.
• Precinct – Smallest unit of election
administration; the voters in each precinct
report to one polling place.
Components of the Party
• The party organization – Leaders, activists,
and many hangers-on.
• The party in the electorate – Party loyalists
who regularly vote the straight party ticket
and others who call themselves party
members.
• The party in government – The party’s
officeholders.
Parties on the Decline
• More voters identify themselves as
independents.
• Split-ticket voting – Voting for candidates of
different parties for different offices at the
same election.
• Campaign finance laws.
• Technology.
• Growth of single-issue organizations.