political parties & elections in america exam one

what are elections about

peaceful resolution of conflict among competing but legitimate claims

what can elections do

provide legitimacy for political leaders and policy outcomes

what do elections prioritize

goals and the distribution of limited governmental resources

what are key issue areas

defense, homeland security, food stamps, housing, education

what do elections debate

means for achieving universally desired ends, like efficient use of government resources

what do elections involve

the negotiation of trade-offs

what can affect utility of elections

the level of accurate public information

what are political parties

any group, however loosely organized, seeking to elect a government of officeholders under a given label

what are the three places the party can be

in the electorate, organization, and in government

what are the roles played by political parties

intermediaries for factions; nominate candidates; contest elections/channel votes; organize government; accountability (blamed when things go right or wrong); manage conflict

how are elections different in the us

founders and their conflicting views regarding political parties; impact of “ant-tyranny” (or “revolutionary”) instincts of the founders

us election differences

frequent voting at all levels; regular schedule for voting (no westminster “vote of confidence”); head of government does not come from legislative branch, executive branch officials cannot serve in legislative branch simultaneously; bi-cameralism (different constituencies and different term lengths); indirect voting (electoral college, original plan for us senate elections); decentralization (key policy areas for sub-national authorities), two-party dominant system

when was the first party system

1788-1824

what was the key controversy of the first party system

the nature of federal power/centralized state (federalist versus democratic-republicans)

what act criminalized dissent

alien and sedition acts (1798)

what were the key developments of the first party system

orderly/peaceful transfer of power, parties develop

when was the second party system

1828-1854

what was the key controversy of the second party system

slavery (democratic party, whigs in two party competitive politics)

what marked the era of the second party system

rise of mass democracy, the patronage/spoils system, technological improvements, and rising power of the west (midwest)

what were the key developments of the second party system

bringing party activists together in a decentralized mass party system (the organizing of followers at all levels)

when was the third party system

1856-1892

what was the key controversy of the third party system

slavery at first, then reconstruction (ascendant republicans versus weakened but competitive democratic party)

what was the key development of the third party system

very high voter turnout (among white males); unprecedented level of power and organization for parties as party bosses picked the candidates and more “spoils” for loyalists

when was the fourth party system

1896-1928

what was the key controversy of the fourth party system

reform, immigration & suffrage (republican dominance renewed)

what were the key developments of the fourth party system

electoral reforms, like secret ballot; women won the right to vote in 1920, through in practice black women were largely disenfranchised

when was the fifth party system

1932-1968?

what was the key controversy of the fifth party system

national power, later civil rights and voting rights (democratic dominance)

what were the key developments of the fifth party system

national government power expands to respond to the depression, world war ii, the cold war, desegregation, and civil rights; triggers a conservative backlash that strengthens republican electoral prospects, particularly in the once solidly democratic south

when was the sixth party system?

1968 or 1980 to current day

what was the key controversy of the sixth party system

affirmative action, abortion, later globalization/trade (republicans v democrats nearly evenly matched)

what were the key developments of the sixth party system

increasing partisanship among elected officials and voter; substantial reduction in split-ticket voting compared to previous era

describe the decentralized structure within party in government

president cannot count on congress (vice versa); even when president’s party controls a legislative chamber, presidential legislative success may be limited

describe the decentralized structure within party organization

national party institutions have relatively narrow range of authority over state party organization

describe the decentralized structure within federalism

governors of the president party often criticize him/her if doing so makes them popular with their own constituencies

describe the decentralized structure among party supporters

wide policy differences among those who identify with a given political party, making it hard for national party messaging to be effective; efforts by party leadership to dictate primary outcomes often fail

describe the federal party organization

republican/democratic national committee; r/d senate campaign committees; r/d congressional campaign committees

describe the state party organization

state party chair is key liaison between national organization and local grassroots activists; state parties are far better funded; recruit quality candidates for local and state offices and encourage greater participation in party nomination contests

describe the local party organization

local committees organize party workers, energize local support, and mobilize voters; patronage may still matter in local governments; local precincts are sometimes not organized and ripe for take-over by more extreme elements of the party

what does the american voter (1960) say

partisanship increases voter turnout and other political action, interest in politics, and knowledge about politics; partisanship shapes issues preferences and candidate evaluations

what are alternate views to the american voter (1960)

the responsible electorate (1966): vo key “voters are not fools” and most admirable voters were “switchers”; changing american voter (1979): issues matter more, ticket-splitting

how to measure political independents

with leaners, one-third of electorate; without them, roughly 10 percent

what are the three ways to think about political independents

traditional view: independents are the model-citizens of democracy, making choices and not blinded by partisanship; revisionist view (1940s): independents are not smart and not politically interested, they have less interest, less knowledge, and are more likely to be influenced by whims and demagogues if they participate at all; neo-revisionist (1970s): independents are not monolithic, there are major differences between leaners and '“pure” independents regarding interest in issues and turnout, very similar patterns found in leaners and strong partisans

what things expanded the right to vote

original voters were mainly white males with property (or who paid taxes); property qualifications had disappeared from all states by 1860; women could vote in 1920; voting rights act of 1965 (federal registrars if needed for african americans); 18 year olds could voter after 1971

what were the traditional strategies to block african american voting

jim crow structural barriers to voter registration; intimidation/violence committed by government officials or others; whites only primaries in many southern states; poll tax, which must be paid well before the election (and presentation of a receipt at the polls was often required); literacy tests, often employed only against african americans (“grandfather clause”)

what is the voting rights act

a landmark act that prohibits racial discrimination in voting; since 1965, the law has been expanded five times to increase its voting protections; the law provides enforcement mechanisms for the 14th and 15th amendments

what does the voting rights act prohibit

any voting law that results in the discrimination against racial or language minorities; use of literacy tests to disenfranchise racial minorities

what does the voting rights act require

justice department approval for any change affecting voting for certain jurisdictions (mainly southern states) (until shelby co v holder, 2013, which undermined key “pre-clearance” protections)

what are key ways to reduce voting

create stringent identification requirements; broad purges of voter rolls; reduce the number of polling places, particularly in minority neighborhoods; reduce the amount of time for early voting; make the election process of voting take longer (a result of the above); reduce confidence in voting mechanisms, like postal delivery of ballots; gerrymandering; felon disenfranchisement

what are forming associations

economic advancement, camaraderie, education, and charitable work

what are politically active groups

lobbyists and political action committees; some groups focus on economic interests, others on specific policy preferences

what are public interest groups

pursue goals seen as good for the entire society (open government, reduced influence of money in politics, etc)

what does work within a political party look like

try to shape party platform and lobby for policy preferences in legislation; support/oppose individual candidates for nomination (votes, money); many interest groups focus on only one party; elected officials key vote rating maximize support for top policies; political action committees are a key source of campaign funds

what does working within the group and its members look like

influencing the voting behavior of members (group ratings, direct communication)

what are some of the attitudes help by us non-voters

a lack of faith in the election system; serious doubts about the impact of their own votes; engaged less with news, left feeling under-informed; more evenly divided on key issues; young adults tend to be less informed and less interested in politics than older nonvoters

what does james ceaser say in his book “presidential selection”

there is a permanent shift to amateurism and people are the sovereign force in nomination

what are the presidential selection objectives

minimize harmful effects of pursuit of office by ambitious (law); promote proper kind of executive leadership and power (mandate): secure an able president; ensure legitimate accession; provide for proper amount of choice and change

what is the overall trend of presidential nomination selection systems

increasing number of participants and increasing perceived representativeness of those making the decision (open, democratic)

when/what was the king caucus system

1800-1820; meeting of party’s nationally elected officeholders (house/senate); clearly closed and undemocratic; worked to the advantage of washington-based office holders

when/what was the state legislative caucuses system

1824-1828; inherent deficiency the inability to unite behind one candidate; increased the number of participants and representativeness of decision makers

when/what was the national convention system

1832-1900; delegates selected from states by old fashioned party caucuses (meeting of state and local party officeholders to select convention delegates); further democratization as delegates come from national, state, and local sources

when/what was the convention dominant system

1900-1968; includes primaries; party membership becomes part of decision making, with a few states conducting primaries (most stick with caucuses until after 1968)

when/what was the primaries dominant system

1972-present; involve most states switching to primaries; candidates had to appeal to rank and file to win

why did mcgovern-fraser commission form

in response to democratic convention chaos of 1968, where young people and minorities felt ignored

what were the goals of mcgovern-fraser

increase participation and increase representativeness

what were the consequences of mcgovern-fraser

near abandonment of conventions in favor of primaries and caucuses; enhance national control of party at the expense of state organization

what were the reforms (starting with the 1972 nomination process) implemented by mcgovern-fraser

requires written rules to enhance participation and opportunities; requires each state to publicize rules; quotas for delegates (african americans, women, and youth (18-25); burden of proof on unrepresentative delegations to demonstrate they haven’t discriminated

what were the effects of mcgovern-fraser

peer review loss: politicians know strengths and weaknesses of others, if politics is a profession, then the longer one is in it the better they can be at it; issue coherence: politicians stand for what they think is popular with their own supporters, they no longer have to compete for the endorsement of a set of party bosses (less party control); allegiance to candidates: party activists support what candidates want (less party elite control)

what were the reform consquences from mcgovern-fraser

more candidates (particularly recently): reforms in nomination process have created opportunities for large numbers of candidates to imagine themselves viable; more presidential primaries; increasing share of delegates awarded through primaries

what does the current nomination system enhance

the primary-dominated system enhances the power of voters (some voters, mainly those with strong ideological preferences and considerable interest in politics) and decreases the influence of party elites

how does someone become and remain a viable candidate

nomination system tends to favor senators over governors; money and media create a sense of who is viable; endorsements from party elites may help, particularly if one is not part of the establishment; two-tiered nomination process: national competition for a winning image, success on the ground in early nomination contests like iowa and nh and super tuesday if the nomination remains in doubt; every nomination for decades has been won by someone who finished first or second in either iowa or nh (excpet biden)

what are the different presidential nomination contest categories

incumbent president, no real challenge; former president, no real challenge; front-runner throughout wins nomination; no clear front-runner; front-runner loses nomination

what are the different primary participant systems

closed primaries: only registered as a member of the party voters can participate; semi-open: you can register as a member of the party on the way in to vote and de-register as a member of that party on the way out; open primaries: anyone registered to vote can participate (only one party on a single day, though); mixed systems: independents can choose which party to vote in each primary day

what are some questions of fairness

timing: a rapid selection of a nominee deprives voters in late-voting state the chance to be heard; delegate selection rules: the role of super delegates for democratic campaigns and winner-take-systems for republican ones; turnout: is it too low for the nomination process to reflect public opinion?; participation differences: different closed/open systems in different states; caucuses: is the caucus format fair?; delegate allocation rules: over-represent states that supporting the party in previous elections and small states (as in the electoral college)

what are the nomination calendar issues

the accidental calendar (1): nh and iowa just happened to end up first, order didn’t matter much in the system before mcgovern-fraser; the accidental calendar (2): front-loading efforts so that individual states can get more clout in the nomination process, multi-state tuesdays require huge fundraising operations for a candidate to remain in the race; excessive media and public attention to early states: deprives voters in nearly all states the opportunity to consider a full field of candidates; unrepresentative early contests: iowa and nh do not look like the country as a whole, is the addition of south carolina and nevada to the first four an affective response?; problematic caucuses: iowa and nevada are two of the first four

what are nomination calendar alternatives

regional primaries: four regional groups of 12 or 13 states, with the order determined by lottery every four years; grouping states by population: smallest states first and largest states go last; national primary: everyone votes the same day, range of counting options (plurality winner, ranked-choice voting, top-two runoffs, approval voting); status quo

what are consequences for general elections

divisive primaries; unchallenged incumbent president advantage; divisions between nominees and same-party legislators; what selection process aids each party in winning electoral college