Where did these Political Symbols come from???

Political Symbols - Donkey

•Presidential candidate

Andrew Jackson was 1st

Democrat to be associated

with the donkey symbol.•His opponents during the 1828 election

tried to label him a “jackass” for his

Populist beliefs “Let the people rule”

•Andrew Jackson found it amusing and used

the donkey on his campaign posters!

•Political Cartoonist Thomas

Nast is credited with making

the donkey the recognized

symbol of the

Democratic Party

Political Symbols - Elephant

•Thomas Nast is also

responsible for the

Republican Party symbol

•Nast drew a donkey clothed in lion’s skin,

scaring away all of the animals in a zoo

•One of the animals was labeled

“The Republican Vote” and it stuck.

Political Symbols - Ballot Box

•Practice of secret voting •Dates back to Ancient

Greeks–used black and white balls–white - yes, black - no–placed into a bag so no

one would know your vote

•US political parties during the early 19th Century would print and distributed ballots to voters

–Not secret, politicians knew how you voted

•Reformed: government printed all ballots and supervised elections so politicians could not watch people vote.

Political Symbols - Uncle Sam•Cartoon representing the

government of the US•Character began to appear in

newspapers and magazines

around the 19th century

Over the years, he has evolved

into a tall, white-haired man

with a beard, dressed in

red, white and blue

•Uncle Sam was modeled after Samuel Wilson,

a meat supplier

•The US government bought their meat

from Sam during the War of 1812

•Stamped his meat US and

became known as

“Uncle Sam”

What Is A Political Party?What Is A Political Party?

A group seeking to control government by winning elections and holding public office

Can be principle, issue, or election oriented

The Two Main Parties in the The Two Main Parties in the U.S. Are . . .U.S. Are . . .

DEMOCRATS REPUBLICANS

What Do Parties Do?What Do Parties Do?

Provide options to the people

Link between government and the people

Bring conflicting groups together

The Nominating FunctionThe Nominating Function

Select Candidates for public office

exclusive job for the parties

sets them apart from all of the other groups in politics

The Informer-Stimulator The Informer-Stimulator FunctionFunction

Inform peopleactivate interest in public affairs

campaign, define issues, criticize other candidates

the end goal of winning votes

The “Seal of Approval” The “Seal of Approval” FunctionFunction

Bonding AgentBonding Agentchoose candidates qualified, good character

The Governmental The Governmental FunctionFunction

legislative and executive work together

Appointments made to executive branch are according to party allegiance:

partisanship

The Watchdog FunctionThe Watchdog Function

The party out of power criticizes party in power

To convince the voters to vote for them in the next election

Why A Two-Party System?Why A Two-Party System? Historical Basis Historical Basis

Debate over the Constitution’s ratification created the first political parties

Federalists & Anti-FederalistsWashington very critical of political

parties– Warned Americans in his Farewell Address

“baneful effects of political parties”

early leaders mistrusted political parties

James Madison: political parties = special interests–Changed his mind–provided a way for like-minded

people to promote their visions

After Constitution: political parties not actively involved in politics– rivalry between Jefferson and

Hamilton (1804)–Hamilton - Founder of Federalist

Party, manufacturing, elite–Jefferson - Founder Dem.Rep.,

farmers, workers

Election of 1800 (Jefferson & Burr)–Electors voted along party lines,

casting two votes–Election resulted in a tie–House of Representatives selected

after 36 ballots, Jefferson–12th Amendment

Pres and VP run together on one ticket

The Force of TraditionThe Force of Tradition

always existed, self-perpetuating

Reluctant to support minor parties

– they made little headway.–Wasted vote?

The Electoral SystemThe Electoral SystemSingle-member districts (winner take all) – “wasting” votes on minor parties

Election written to discourage minority parties

Who writes the laws?

American IdeologicalAmerican IdeologicalConsensusConsensus

Americans tend to agree on fundamental issues

Major political parties take moderate stands-as do most Americans – built on compromise

Why Don’t Other Systems Why Don’t Other Systems Work?Work? Multiparty SystemsMultiparty Systems

Each party represents very different interests

Creates an unstable governmentAmerican institutional and

ideological ideas make a multiparty system unlikely

Multi-party systems–separate themselves from each other–secure the loyalty of voters who have

a particular viewpoint - special interest

–Enables smaller parties to competeacquires legislative seats in

proportion to its share of the total vote. (no winner-takes-all)

Difference between Multi-Difference between Multi-party and Two-Party Systemsparty and Two-Party Systems

Two-party: parties tend to have overlapping coalitions and programs–Each party must appeal to the

moderate voter - majority –Winner takes all - seats are not

distributed proportionally–Single member district: only one

candidate is elected per district

One-Party SystemsOne-Party Systems

“No-Party” System

Nearly all dictatorships have one-party systems

How Do We Choose A Party?How Do We Choose A Party?

Membership - voluntary and generally composed of a mixture of the population

Segments of the population tend to support one party or the other (for a period of time)–Example: Unions favored Democrats

Business favored by Republicans

Reasons For Choosing a PartyReasons For Choosing a Party

Family - 2 out of 3 Americans follow party allegiance of parents

Major Events – war, depressionEconomic StatusPlace of ResidenceLevel of EducationWork Environment

The Two-Party System in The Two-Party System in American HistoryAmerican History

The Era of One-Party DominationThe Era of One-Party Domination

The Era of the Democrats, 1800–1860 The Era of the Republicans, 1860–1932 The Return of the Democrats, 1932–1968 The Start of a New Era - why 1968?

– Since 1968 the Republicans dominated the White House, while Democrats controlled Congress

http://www.270towin.com/

Minority Parties in the US Minority Parties in the US Ideological PartiesIdeological Parties

Based on a specific set of beliefs, including a comprehensive view of social, economic, and political matters

Example: Libertarian Party

Receive little votes, but are long-lived

Single-Issue PartiesSingle-Issue Parties

Concentrate on a single public policy matter

Examples: Know Nothings,

Right-to-LifeFaded into history as issues disappear

Economic Protest PartiesEconomic Protest Parties

Focus on economic discontentExample: Greenback and Populist

PartiesTEA: Taxed Enough Already

Splinter PartiesSplinter Parties

Groups that break off from one of the two major parties

Examples: “Bull Moose” Party and “Dixiecrats” “Green Party”

The Key Role of Minority PartiesThe Key Role of Minority Parties

Introduced useful ideas in American Politics

Can play a “spoiler role” in an election when the two major candidates are evenly matched.

Most important is their roles as critics and reformers

Barriers to Minor PartiesBarriers to Minor Parties

1. Constitution: no mention of Political Parties

2. Winner-takes-all elections

3. Petition in all 50 states plus DC to get on ballots

- PA need 67,000 signatures

4. Rules regarding campaign fund raising - advantages to incumbent

The Organization The Organization of Political Partiesof Political Parties

Reality of Political PartiesReality of Political Parties

Two major parties are highly decentralized (internal fighting)

No real chain of command–States parties loosely tied to national–Local parties independent of states

The Role of the PresidentThe Role of the President

The President’s party is usually more solidly united than the opposing

The President is the party leaderThe other party has no comparable

leader - party out of power

http://www.schooltube.com/video/c922493421eee4c27961/

National Party MachineryNational Party MachineryFour ElementsFour Elements

1. National Convention– Meet to nominate the presidential and

vice presidential candidate every 4 years, create party platform

2. National Committee– Handles the party’s affairs between

conventions

National Party MachineryNational Party MachineryFour ElementsFour Elements

3. National Chairperson–Heads up the national committee

4. Congressional Campaign Committees–Job to increase party’s

congressional seats

State and Local Party MachineryState and Local Party Machinery

State – job is to further the party’s interests in that state

Local –follow the State’s electoral map, most active a few months before an election

Three Elements of the PartyThree Elements of the Party

Party Organization – leaders, activists, and hangers-on who

control party machineryParty in the electorate

– loyalists who vote their candidatesParty in government

– officeholders at all levels of government

The Future of the Majority PartiesThe Future of the Majority Parties

Political Parties have been in a state of decline since the late 1960s

Parties are unlikely to disappear as long as they continue to perform necessary functions

Reasons for DeclineReasons for Decline

• Larger number of voters registering as independent

• SPLIT-TICKET VOTING – voting for candidates of both parties for offices at the same election.

Reasons (cont)Reasons (cont)

• Greater internal conflict

• Changes in technology of campaigning.

• Growth of single-issue organizations who side with a candidate on a specific issue.

QuestionsQuestions1. What type of political party formed as

the result of separating from one of the major parties?

2. What type of party grows during periods of economic discontent?

3. Name a key role minor parties play.4. The “know nothings” are an example of

what type of minor party.5. What type of minor party usually forms

around a strong personality?

6. In general, how are the the organization of the two major parties in the United States characterized?

7. When Mitt Romney lost the presidential election, why didn’t he become the leader of the Republican Party?

8. What is meant by the party platform?9. What is split-ticket voting?10. Why do some political analysts believe

that the party system may collapse?

11. Tom Corbet is currently the Republican Governor of PA. John Boehner is one of the most powerful Republicans in Congress. Which of the three components of the political party is this an example?