Chapter 13

What are the four functions of political parties?

1) Mobilize and educate voters 2) create platforms that define their ideals and goals 3) recruit candidates and manage their campaigns 4) govern in hopes of implementing their desired public policy.

What happened in the 1896 election, and what was the result in terms of widespread political party affiliation?

1860 election marked the second national realignment. Republican Party quickly began to dominate national politics

What influences do the two main political parties have on the way government works at all levels? Why is control of state legislatures of particular importance to political parties?

All levels: Write policy, elect candidates that will enact legislation along party beliefs, and maintain power. Holding power at a state level can help parties enact legislation and create policy reflecting their party's ideology. It gives the majority party the advantage in drawing legislative district maps that can strengthen their likelihood of remaining in power.

What are critical elections, and what are the two causes of these realignments?

Critical Elections are elections that polarize voters around new core issues and party realignment is a sharp lasting shift in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties. Two causes of party realignment: One where a major party is so badly defeated that it disappears (federalist and Whigs). Two where parties continue but voters shift support from one party to the other (1932

What is the difference between hard money and soft money? What rules were placed on soft money?

Hard money: any contribution subject to the regulation of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which was established in 1947 as the monitoring agency for campaign contributions. Soft money: donations not regulated by the FEC---as long as those contributions were for the purpose of "party-building activities," not for supporting specific candidates. Issue ads could point out the opposition's stand on issues & leave a negative impression, but as long as they don't say, "Vote for our candidate!" were a permissible use of soft money.

The 1968 Democratic National Convention was a particularly traumatic event in mid-20th century American history. What caused the riots, and how did the McGovern-Fraser Commission attempt to fix the issue?

It revealed the divisions within the Democratic Party concerning their opinions on how presidential candidates were nominated. The convention favored Hubert Humphrey, who entered the presidential race after Robert Kennedy was assassinated. However, he did so without running in a single primary or caucus. This sent a message to the youth that the old, white, and somewhat conservative delegates made party decisions, while the youths that were eligible for the draft in the unpopular Vietnam conflict but ineligible in may states to vote brought their frustrations to the streets by rioting. The McGovern-Fraser Commission was created by the Democratic Party to examine, consider, and rewrite convention rules.

Other than acting as a spoiler, "stealing" votes from major party candidates, what is the main impact that minor parties have made to American politics?

Minor parties play an important role as the conscience of the nation (pg.477).

What are the two forms of TV placement that candidates rely on? Which one do they prefer, and why?

News Story: a short news segment showing the candidate in action(giving a speech, volunteering, appearing at a political rally). It is free media coverage b/c candidates send press releases announcing their events. Campaign Commercial: TV commercial that has to be paid for. It places great emphasis on imagery, action-oriented themes, emotional messages, negative characterizations of the opponent, and quick production turnaround.

What happened in the 1800 election, and what was the result in terms of widespread political party affiliation?

Power shifted from the federalists, (followers if Washington, Adams, and Hamilton, who were supporters of a strong national government that invested in national infrastructure and banking) to the Jeffersonians. (Later called the Democratic -Republicans, who favored states' rights, limited government and generally fewer laws)

Describe the four types of single issue parties, and give a real life example of each type.

Prohibition Party, founded in 1869 as a temperance movement to ban alcohol. Green Party arose in the 1970s to advocate for env'l awareness, social justice, and nonviolence. Ideological parties: Socialist, Libertarian Splinter parties: Bull Moose, American Independent Economic protest parties: Greenback, Populist Single-Issue parties: American(Know-nothings), Prohibition

What happened in the 1932 election, and what was the result in terms of widespread political party affiliation?

Republicans dominated national parties with their pro-growth, pro-business agenda. Democrats became the party of the south.

Describe three significant barriers to third party success within the US political system.

Single-member districts: candidate who wins most vote, or a plurality in a field of candidates win, wins that office. Money & resources: Minor party candidates have a steeper hill to climb in terms of financing, ballot access, and exposure. Nominee's party needs to have won a certain percentage of the vote in the previous election in order to qualify for gov't funding in the current election. Minor parties have a difficult time competing financially unless they're self-financed. Winner-Take-All Voting (largest barrier): a compromise b/w an election of the president by Congress and an election of the president by a popular vote. The electoral college determines the presidential candidate, but the popular vote determines how the electors cast their ballots.

What are the two stages of a campaign for high office, and what is the role of the political party (and its leadership) at each stage?

Stage 1: Primary Election Rank-and-file (ordinary) voters nominate their candidates. Multiple candidates usually compete against one another for the party's nomination. Party-sponsored debates(forums) featuring the candidates for a party allows the voter to get a sense of each candidate's principles and issue positions. Stage 2: General Election Party candidates defeat their opposition (opposite party). Party unites in cause and hosts political rallies or fundraisers to promote their candidates.

What was the main restriction of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002? How did this law (probably) result in more extreme candidates on both sides of the aisle?

The BCRA included provisions designed to end the use of soft money in federal elections. As an ultimate result money that would have gone to parties as soft money went to special interest groups instead to support a candidates political party which lead to the weakening of the influence of political parties.

What is the FEC, and what rules does it enforce?

The FEC is the Federal Election Committee. It is an executive branch agency that monitors the flow of money and enforces financial limits. For example, national and state organizations must register with the FEC once they spend more than $1k towards a federal election.

What is the realignment that happened starting in the 1960s, and what has been the result in terms of widespread political party affiliation?

The realignment in the 60s was where the solid south went from being democratic to mostly republican. Prior to the 60s the south was predominantly democratic until the civil rights acts. Democrats became more advocates to bigger government while republicans focused more on conservatism.

What caused the shift from party-centered campaigns to candidate-centered campaigns?

The shift in the 1960s was due to the more widespread use of tv which allowed cand. to build a following based on their own personalities rather than on party affiliation and bc society questioned public institutions like political institutions as the vietnam war dragged on.

What happened in the 1824 election, and what was the result in terms of widespread political party affiliation? (pg 465

The split from the original alignment where Andrew Jackson formed the Democratic Party. Many of the voters who supported were farmers in smaller rural areas which lead to his victory

After the reforms of the McGovern-Fraser Commission, the Democrats were unsuccessful in several presidential elections. What subsequent reform did they make to their nominating process?

They modified the system's emphasis on the party's rank-and-file voting to give more independence to the party's elites. The party created superdelegates, high-ranking delegates not be hidden to any state primary vote.

What is the function of the hill committees?

They recruit cand. for open seats and seats held by the other party in congress and try to reelect incumbents. They conduct polls, help can with fundraising activities, contribute to campaigns, make ads, and buy Tv time.