OUTLINE GITELSON CHAPTER 6 POLITICAL
PARTIES (4)
I)
What Parties are, what they do. (p. 154)
A) There are 2 major parties follow set of guiding principles. (p. 154)
B) Parties opinions
differ on economic/social issues. (p. 154)
C) Political Party: group
with same interests organized to get
candidates for public office. (p. 154)
D) Decentralization: many
people within party share decision-making
power. (p. 155)
E) "3 Headed Political
Giant": 3 different alliances. (p. 155)
1) party-as-organization:
small/informal. Mostly volunteers. Works throughout
year. (p. 155)
2)
party-in-the-electorate: those who identify w/same party & votes for
its
candidate.
(p. 155)
3) party-in-government: those elected/appointed to government
office under a
party label.
Organizes/reorganize government and sets policy. (p. 155)
II)
Who belongs to major parties and why. (p. 156)
A) DEMOCRATS
generally the majority: Africans, Hispanics, Catholics, Jews, women,
working class. Over 50.
South African Americans. (p. 156)
a) Attachment to
Democratic party is stronger. (p. 156)
b)
Became majority with voter since FDR and New Deal. (p. 156)
B) REPUBLICANS: white, protestant,
middle->upper class, conservative.
C) View on government’s roles is the
main divider between parties. (pgs. 157&160)
1) Democrats: want large government
role in social welfare, business regulation.
Support non military foreign aid programs/environmental initiatives
favored
more, gun
control, affirmative action.
Better at improving social security,
Medicare, education,
health. Pro-women's
rights to choose. (pgs. 157&160)
2) Republicans: want reduce taxes, aid to
minorities/welfare programs, want less
regulation in business, support government
spending on military. Better at
reducing
crimes/taxes, having strong military/family values. Pro-life.
(pgs. 157&160)
3) Independents: say their
voting influenced by issues/leadership qualities.
Importance in effect in state/local elections=little evidence of impact.
Increased indifference to both major parties(D and R) since
major
crises:
IIB)
Minor parties
A) American
Independent: founded by George
Wallace to end Vietnam War. Split from
Democrats.
(p. 168)
B) Reform Party: related to Ross
Perot presidential candidacy. To reduce deficit and
promote other reforms. (p. 168)
C) Green Party: focused on environment
and social justice. Ralph Nader('96): 1st
presidential
nominee. (p. 168)
D) Natural Law party: followed principles of Marharishi
Mahesh Yogi to solve social
problems.
E) Libertarian: pro-individual freedoms/liberties through reducing government power. (p. 154)
III)
What parties do.
A) Build Electoral Coalitions: loyal supporters agreeing with party's
stand on most issues,
votes
for party's candidate for office. Ties to parties have weakened. (p. 159)
B) Developing public policy: what government should do about various
problems=legislation made. (p. 159)
Platforms: party goal
statements. Specific policy agendas. Candidates
not bound
to follow. (p. 159)
C) Winning elections: through party
organizations, growing aid. (p. 162)
a) Primary: party members select their candidate
to run for office to represent
them. Limit direct role of party-as-org during
nominations. Getting
involved=win. (p. 162)
b) Organizing government: Congress vote
along party lines, party leaders control
is more difficult. Average voting in party
based on strength of stand in an issue.
Parties used to control conflicts
of interest between groups. (p. 163)
D) American style politics, 2 style system.
a)
Constitution doesn't mention parties. Founding
fathers against formation of
parties.
(p. 163)
b) Modern democratic party result from
election between Andrew Jackson(D) v.
c) Republicans
party start: 1854 to oppose slavery. Start from business,
merchant, abolitionist, North & West small
farmer support.
Republican presidential candidate. (p. 164)
d) Party Realignment: shift of voters from one party to other
making one
dominant. (p. 164)
-Cause of realignment:
1) Shift of support due to political, social,
economic development. (p. 164)
2)
Large # of new voters entering electorate. (p. 164)
3) Examples: democratization of
parties, slavery issue, Depression, shift
in population(rural Republicans to big city
democrats)=realignment
happens. (p. 165)
4) Civil rights movement causing African
American voting=power to
democrats. (p. 165)
5)
Realignment tends to occur over
period of years. (p. 166)
e) Scholars suggest we are going
through party de-alignment: public
disassociates/de-align self from both parties causing split in
votes between
other parties. (p. 166)
f)
We are more in a de-alignment then a realignment. (p. 166)
E) Why 2 parties.
a) History of a 2 party dominance.
b)
Winner takes all idea: rules governing electoral college system.
1) single-member district,
winner-take-all electoral system: 1
representative per congressional/legislative
district. Candidate must
win plurality vote-most votes. (p. 166)
2) Europeans use proportional
representation: legislative seat assigned a
number of candidates in proportion to # of
votes party receives in a
district. Minor
or third parties may gain representation even though
didn't get plural vote. They try to keep
"middle of road" positions to
attract voters. (p. 167)
c) Division of interest come from
nation government power and questioning
policies(social/economical). (p. 167)
d)
Similarity in goals: don't support many other radical systems. (p. 167)
e)
State laws: regulate party and its definition. (p. 168)
F) Third parties (p. 168):
a) Only Republican party developed into a permanent one. (p. 168)
b) Ross Perot(Independent)
got 19% of popular vote. Received less as a Reform candidate. (p. 168)
c) Developed because they feel their interest aren't well
represented. (p. 168)
d)
Federal laws work against them: automatic funding not given. (p. 168)
e)
More successful in local/state
governments. For example: Jesse Ventura of Reform
party. (p. 168)
IV) Party
structure from bottom -> up
-Decentralization: thinking
about structure of parties. (p. 170)
A) Local parties (p. 170):
a) Precinct:
typical bottom structure-voting district covering several blocks. Gets out the votes.
(p. 170)
b) Wards:
city council districts below city
wide level. Members may be elected/appointed. (p. 170)
c)
Patronage: jobs given to party
supporters. (p. 170)
d)
Preferments: giving jobs/contracts to people/companies that support the party. (p. 170)
e) Partisan: you identify with a
specific party. (p. 181)
f ) Local parties
scarcely exist around country, since nonpartisan
elections are the rule
due to anti-party reforms. Many local/state elections are nonpartisan. (p. 181)
Recently, local organizations are
increasingly active in campaigns. (p. 170)
B) State parties: varying powers. (p.
172)
a) Control/POWER usually
in state chairperson or governor. (p. 172)
b) Increase interest in offering services for candidates: fund raising/research(polls) for state/local candidates. (p.
172)
C) National parties (p. 172):
a) Staff directed by
national chairperson & national committees. (p. 172)
b)
Campaigns for nominees. (p. 172)
c) Electoral role
challenged by interest groups. (p. 172)
d) PAC(political
action committees): Contributors of
money to campaign that has same aim as
them. Developed
because federal law prohibited most interest groups from donating money to
political party. (p. 172)
V)
Future of parties
A) Party loyalty decreasing: increase independents, and ticket
splitters. (p. 173)
B) Moving away from party-centered
campaigns: campaign where party coordinates activities, raise
money, developing strategies. (p. 174)
C) Moving towards candidate-centered
campaigns: paid consultants/volunteers do the work. Parties play
secondary role. (p. 174)
D) Parties not irrelevant but are less relevant than past. (p. 174)
E) Still play a dominate role in
organizing/coordinating PUBLIC POLICY.
(p. 174)
F) Represent individuals not
adequately served by other parties. (p. 174)