Lesson 35: Political Parties in the United States
In this lesson, we will learn about political parties and the functions they
serve. We will then look at how political parties are organized at the
national, state, and local levels. Finally, we will learn about a couple of
terms used by political scientists – party-in-the-electorate and
party-in-government.
One main question polls ask is, "Do you consider yourself to be a Republican, a
Democrat, or an Independent?" Responses had been fairly evenly distributed
among the three groups until recently, when more than 40% started to identify
as independent.
An Independent is a voter or candidate who does not identify with a political
party.
While special interest groups are formed to influence government,
political parties have the ultimate goal of running it.
The functions of the political parties are pretty straightforward:
Recruit candidates, organize and run elections, present alternative policies,
accept responsibility for running the government, and act as the opposition to
the party in power.
Party Organization is the formal structure and leadership of a political party,
including election committees; local, state, and national executives; and paid
professional staff. While some people think it is hierarchical, in reality, it
is not. Local units actually have independence from the national party.
To explore National Party Organization, it all begins with the National
Convention. That is the meeting held every four years by each major party to
select presidential and vice-presidential candidates, write a platform, choose
a national committee, and conduct party business.
The Party Platform is a document drawn up at each national convention outlining
the policies, positions, and principles of the party. Often, the party platform
gets discarded after the convention as party candidates continue their
campaign, but sometimes, those policies become law.
There is a difference between ordinary party members and delegates. Delegates
are often far more extreme to the right or the left compared to the ordinary
members. That makes sense since delegates are either chosen by party leaders or
are voted on in a primary, and voters in the primary are often the most
committed to the party.
The National Committee is a standing committee of a political party established
to direct and coordinate party activities during the four years between
national party conventions.
The national committee ratifies the choice of chairperson who acts as the
spokesperson for the entire party. The chairperson and the committee then start
planning the next convention as well as raising funds and publicizing the party.
State parties share some features with the national party, even though they are
unique in their own ways. Features they have in common include having a
chairperson, a committee, and local organizations.
The State Central Committee is the principal organized structure for each
political party within each state. This committee is responsible for carrying
out policy decisions made at the party's state convention.
They also have control of the party funds since their main job is to get their
party's candidates elected. After that, they have little to do with the
candidate.
Supported by district leaders, ward captains, and
party workers,
the local organization is the lowest layer of the party machinery called the
Grassroots.
At the local level,
patronage is the practice that
holds it all together. Patronage is the practice of rewarding faithful party
workers and followers with government employment and contracts.
People who identify with a party but are not in
a formal organization and are not an elected official themselves are
known as the Party-in-the-Electorate. They include not just ordinary Americans,
but also elite people such as media personalities, celebrities, and other
prominent figures.
Policy Demanders play a big role in their party. They are individuals or
interest group members who participate in political parties with the intent to
see that certain policies are adopted or specific groups favored.
After the vote, the shift changes from getting into office to what to do now
that they are in office. The president has a number of seats to fill and
normally, he chooses from a pool of applicants provided by the political party.
Appointing judges is also a great opportunity for the party that wins.
A party can really take control and often does, but checks and
balances are in place to keep that control from
ever going completely in
one direction. This is why most Americans favor a divided government.
A Divided Government is a situation in which one major political party controls
the presidency and the other controls one or more chambers of Congress. Or, it
could be where one party controls a state governorship and the other controls
the state legislature. Voters who are for a divided government might
participate in Ticket Splitting. That is voting for candidates of two or more
parties for different offices. For example, a voter splits her ticket if she
votes for a Republican candidate for President and a Democratic candidate for
Congress.