Political Parties, Candidates, and CampaignsChapter 8

AP U.S. Government and Politics

Introduction• A political party is an ongoing coalition of interests

joined together to try to get its candidates for public office elected under a common label.

• U.S. campaigns are both party-centered and candidate-centered.– Party-centered - the Republican and Democratic parties

compete across the country election after election.– Candidate-centered - individual candidates devise their

own strategies, choose their own issues, and form their own campaign organizations.

The History of U.S. Parties• Parties are linkage institutions; they serve to

connect citizens with government.– Party Competition develops when Americans vote.• Voters choose between candidates who represent the

Republican and Democratic parties.• Voter’s opinions are narrowed – they vote and the party that

wins gets to govern.

• Many of America’s early leaders distrusted parties.• Washington warned of the “baneful effects” of parties in his

farewell address.• Madison – likened parties to special interests – Federalist #10

The First Parties• The first political parties originated from a rivalry

between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton.– Hamilton organized the Federalist Party.– Jefferson created the Democratic-Republican Party.• After Jefferson won the 1800 election, no Federalist would

again control the white house.– In the 1820s, it appeared that the political system may

operate without parties.• “The Era of Good Feeling”

– Policy differences split the Democratic-Republicans.• The dominant faction, led by Andrew Jackson, became known

as the “Democrats”.

Andrew Jackson and Grassroots Parties• Jackson’s goal – wrest political power from elites.– Jackson created a grassroots party, a party organized at

the level of the voters, which depends on voter support.• Voting rights were extended to those without property, causing

many more people to vote.– During this time the Whig Party was created by

opponents of Jackson and the Democrats.• It was short lived, as the issue of slavery tore the party apart.

– As the Whigs disintegrated, a northern-based party called the Republican Party emerged.• In 1860, Republican nominee Abraham Lincoln won with just

40% of popular vote, causing Southern states to secede.• Civil War – only time in U.S. history where Two-Party system

failed to peacefully solve American’s political differences.

Republicans and Democrats – The Two-Party System• Since the Civil War, America has settled into a

pattern of competition the Republican and Democratic parties.– They have been able to respond to crucial times through

reorganization through change.– Party Realignment occurs when dramatic shifts in

partisan preference drastically alter the political landscape.

– Preceding party realignment is one or more critical elections, also known as realigning elections.

– A critical election is an election that signals a party realignment through voter polarization around new issues and personalities.

The Two-Party System, cont.• Realignments are rare.– Civil War realignment, 1896 election,

Great Depression (1930s)• Today, the Republican Party

dominates politics in the South.• Northeastern and Western States

are increasingly Democratic.– Since the 1970s, divided government

has become common.• In a divided government, different

political parties control the presidency and one or both houses of Congress.

Electoral and Party Systems• U.S. history has been dominated by a two-party

system.• Most democracies have a multiparty system, in

which three or more parties have the capacity to control government.

• America’s two-party system is the result of voting in single-member districts.– The candidate with the most votes in a district wins the

office – winner-take-all system.• Discourages minor parties.

– Different from Europe, where proportional representation is used to allocate seats according to a party’s share of the popular vote.

Politics in the Two-Party System• The main goal of a political party is to get its

candidates elected to office.– To do this, they try to attract majority support by staying

near the center of the political spectrum.• Median Voter Theorem states that parties can maximize their

vote by winning voters in the middle.

• The Party Coalition refers to the groups and interests that support a political party.– The gender gap represents the difference between men

and women in political attitude and voting preference.• Women – more likely to have liberal views and be Democrats.• Hispanic vote is a major key to both parties; currently more

Democrats than Republicans.

Minor (Third) Parties• The U.S. has always had minor political parties.– They form to promote policies their followers do not

believe are being represented adequately by the two major parties.

Types of Minor Parties– Reform parties – Claim that the two major parties are

having a corrupting influence on government.• Progressive Party, Reform Party (Ross Perot)

– Single-issue parties – Formed around a single issue of overriding interest to its followers.• Free-soil Party, Prohibition Party, Right to Life Party

Types of Minor Parties– Ideological parties – characterized by ideological

commitment to a broad philosophical position.• Socialist Workers Party, Libertarian Party

– Factional Parties – minor parties created when a faction within one party breaks away to form its own party.• Bull Moose Party (Roosevelt), States’ Rights Party

What are the functions of a political party?– Get their candidates elected.• Recruit candidates for office.

– Organize and run campaigns.• Organize voter registration drives, recruit volunteers, work to

increase participation.– Present alternative policies for operating the

government.– Provide a political identity.• Each party has an image – gives the public a familiar platform.

– Endorsing specific policies.– Coordinating policymaking.• Through party identification, politicians in different

government branches work together and support each other.

What are the functions of a political party?– Accepting responsibility for operation of government.• Staffing executive branch with party supporters, developing

linkages among officials to implement their policies.– Act as organized opposition to the party in power.• By organizing opposition to the “in” party, the opposition party

forces debate on policy alternatives.

The Weakening of Parties• Many political scientists feel political parties are

getting weaker.– Candidates, not parties, now have the most influence in

politics.– More people identify themselves as independents.• More campaigns are candidate-centered as opposed to party

centered.• Increase in split-ticket voting.

– Parties are more “open.”• Direct primary elections replaced parties nominating

candidates for office.• Candidates now compete for public support, not necessarily

the support of their party leaders.

The Weakening of Parties, cont.– Candidates now directly get most money.• It doesn’t pass through party leaders.

– Decline of patronage jobs also weakened parties.• Government jobs are given to people loyal to a particular

candidate, not an entire party.– Dealignment – General decline in party identification

and party loyalty in the electorate.• Despite losing influence, party organizations are in

no danger of going extinct.

The Structure and Role of Party Organizations• Structurally, U.S. parties are loose associations of

national, state, and local organizations.

The Structure and Role of Party Organizations, cont.Local Party Organizations– Parties are organized from the bottom up, not top down.• 95 % of party activists work at the local level.

– Local parties concentrate on local elections.• They also take secondary roles in state and national elections.

State Party Organizations– At the state level, each party is headed by a central

committee.• Made up of members of local party organizations and local and

state officeholders.• Day-to-day operations are carried out by a chairperson.

– Concentrate on statewide races – governor and U.S. Senator, and state legislatures.

The Structure and Role of Party Organizations, cont.National Party Organizations– National party organizations are structured in a similar

way as those at the state level.• Their power is largely confined to setting organizational policy

and determining the site of the presidential nominating convention.

– Major role in campaigns – raise and spend money.• Most money raised is spent on recruiting voters and

advertising.• Some money is given directly to Senate or House candidates

for their campaigns.– This money, along with the money a candidate receives

from individual contributors or interest groups is called hard money.

• Hard money is subject to strict limits.– Soft Money – campaign contributions that are not

subject to legal limits because they were given to parties, not individual candidates.• Soft money contributions are no longer legal as a result of the

enactment of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA).• Ban on soft money does not apply to “527 groups”, which are

non-profit political groups.• “527 groups” now are allowed to run ads on issue advocacy,

but can’t attack a specific candidate.– United States v. Federal Election Commission (2010) –

Supreme Court ruled that corporations and unions can’t be banned from spending money on campaigns.• It was ruled that they have the same 1st Amendment rights as

individuals.

Candidate-Centered Campaigns• Party committees have a service relationship with

candidates.– They assist candidates, but have no power to require them

to support positions.– Today’s campaigns are controlled by the candidates.

• Campaign costs continue to rise.– Incumbents have an advantage in fundraising.– Since campaigns are so expensive, the money chase is

relentless.• Political Consultants are key operatives in today’s

campaigns.– They are professionals who advise candidates on aspects

of their campaigns.

Candidate-Centered Campaigns, cont.• Political consultants are skilled at packaging

candidates.– Packaging refers to the process of recasting the

candidate’s record into an appealing image.Voter Contacts• Campaigns use a variety of methods to try to

influence voters.– Air wars – the main battleground of the modern

campaign, mainly through the use of TV ads.– Ground wars concentrate on getting swing voters to the

polls.• “Get-out-the-vote” efforts

Candidate-Centered Campaigns, cont.– Web wars are conducted using the internet to provide

information, generate support, recruit volunteers, and raise money.• Many experts feel that internet advertising will overtake TV as the

main medium of political campaigns.• Advertising is cheaper on the internet.

Public Influence on Parties and Candidates• Candidate-centered campaigns have some distinct

advantages.– They infuse new blood into politics.– They lend flexibility to electoral politics.

• When issues change, self-directed candidates adjust quickly.– They encourage national officeholders to be responsive to

local interests.

Candidate-Centered Campaigns, cont• Candidate-centered campaigns also have

disadvantages.– They become fertile ground for interest groups.• They give large sums of money, allowing them to influence the

election’s outcome.– They weaken accountability by making it easier for

officeholders to deny responsibility for government action.

• Candidate-centered campaigns strengthen the relationship between voters and candidates while weakening the relationship between the electorate and their representative institutions (parties).