Political Parties

3 parts of the Party

electorate (people eligible to vote), government, organization (national nominating conventions every 4 years to nominate a candidate to represent the party in the general election)

Linkage Institutions

connect individuals to the political process; interest groups, media, political parties, elections

Linkage Institution: Political Parties

connect, persuade, educate, and mobilize (encourage people to participate) voters; organized in a hierarchial system with written bylaws: platform of issues, goals, and a fundraising plan

Robocalls

Pre-recorded calls urging votes for their candidate and discourage voting for the opposing candidate

Voter Registration Drives

volunteers canvas neighborhoods to spread the party philosophy in attempts to convince individuals to vote

Three Levels of Party Support

national, state, and local party committees educate their membership through gatherings, mailings, robocalls, and door-to-door visits

Goal of political parties

get their candidate elected; encourage voters to help them encourage others to vote for their candidate

Factors that Influence Party structure

candidate centered campaigns, coalition building, critical elections, changes in communication

Candidiate-Centered campaigns

people vote for a candidate rather than a party; speak directly to the people; weakened the parties

Coalitions

parties need to appeal to their core demographic groups and broaden their appeal to new voters; convey a positive image during televised events; parties must adjust to changes in demographics in order to broaden their appeal

1968 Democratic National Convention

revealed deep divisions in the Democratic party on television; clash between old party regulars and young anti-Vietnam activists

Creation of the McGovern-Fraser Commission

examine and change convention rules; sig changes were made to bring minorities, women, and younger voters to future conventions

Creation of Superdelegates

high ranking delegates w/in the party that were not subject to any state primary vote; include Democratic governors, mayors of large cities, congressmen; account for 20% of delegates

Unity and Reform Commission of 2016

met to reform the role of superdelegates; reducing the % of uncommitted delegates

Party Era

long period of time where one of the two major parties has dominated electoral politics; begins with Critical election (voters shift allegiance to new party due to social/political/economic crisis)

Polling & Mining Databases

give info on voter preferences

Social Media

candidates use this to speak directly to voters

Formal Debates

candidates formally debate one another on major issues of the campaign

advantage of timing

campaigns hire media experts that know when and how to best time announcements for max impact

Third parties

minor parties, pull votes away from major party, policy innovators (major parties adopt their platforms as their own)

Barriers to 3rd part success: Single-Member Districts/Winner-take-all

only on person can win the seat if they get the most votes; wasted vote; no majority in any single district

Barriers to 3rd party success: Money

less organized, harder time raising money; expensive to be on every state ballot

Barriers to 3rd party success: Media

ignore third party candidates—difficult to be known and develop name recognition; expensive to buy paid money advertisements

Barriers to 3rd party success: Major Parties Steal Popular Proposals

if they develop a policy position which gains broad public support, one of the two major parties will take that position as their own; (ex: democratic party taking poplar environmental positions developed by green party)