Political Parties-Shaw Midterm 2

What is the "Front-loading" problem?

"Front-loading" refers to the phenomenon of states pushing their primaries earlier and earlier, so that the election is decided too quickly. The process has begun earlier every election for about two decades. This year, almost half the states will have moved to the earliest date allowed by the parties, on February 5th ("Tsunami Tuesday.")

What is divided government?

"When one party controls the executive but not both chambers of the legislature."

How do political parties influence the judicial branch?

-Appointments are much more politicized -Behavior of justices tends to defy party lines -The composition of the court IS influenced by party politics -Party matters more when judges are elected

Redistricting

-Every ten years states have to re-draw their district lines to make sure that an equal number of people are in each district. (So you have to re-draw the lines even if your overall number of representatives doesn't change.)

Apportionment

-Every ten years there is a Census of the United States, which determines how many members a state gets in the House of Representatives.

What does David Mayhew say about divided government leading to gridlock?

-He says it does not lead to gridlock! -He says it doesn't lead to gridlock for the following reasons 1.Presidents don't pass things in a vacuum. 2.Presidents over-reach when they control both houses of Congress. 3.Power sharing makes members less secure and more likely to focus on re-election.

Are parties as strong in the state congresses?

-No they aren't. 1.State parties are less polarized and heterogeneous .2.Greater electoral competition (more competitive districts). 3.No competing centers of power. 4.Other sources of needed resources. 5.Less legislative professionalism. 6.Styles of individual leaders.

What does Fiorina say about divided government leading to gridlock?

-She says it does lead to gridlock! •Voters engage in policy-balancing .•Divided government is even more common at the level of the state legislatures due to the rise of Democratic lawmakers. •Democratic success/Republican failure at the state legislative level is due to the professionalization of legislatures.

Institutional Factors for elections

-The "Secret" Ballot -Ballot form -Election calendars -Electoral districts/Rules for election

What does Gary Cox and Sam Kernell say about divided government leading to gridlock?

-They say it does lead to gridlock! •If you model congressional behavior under divided government you get an institutionally structured game in which each party has a veto. Players have an incentive to... 1.Go it alone. 2.Appeal to the public.

What does the "Sub-Committee" Theory state?

-This theory states that parties do matter in congress. 1.Party leadership has primary control over committee leadership. 2.The party caucus is a plenary body; it is THE instrument for involving members in party discussions. 3.Decisions are no longer made by cross-party bargaining, but by the major party as a result of more cohesive and disciplined party leadership. 4.The majority party's agenda, ideology, and policy preferences determine how committees function; rules of the House and its procedures would be "consistent with majority party interests."

What does the "Committee Theory" state?

-This theory states that parties do not matter in congress 1.Each standing committee has autonomy. 2.Each chair has unrestricted control over the committee. 3.Seniority system determines rank .4.No control by party leaders over committee agendas or behavior. 5.Party caucus selects the Speaker and other officials, but that's the extent of control. 6.Lack of party ideology and discipline leads to cross-party bargaining processes.

What are the mechanisms available to a party in selecting their nominee?

1. Primaries 2. Conventions 3. Caucuses

What reforms and commissions changed the national party rules in regards to primaries?

1. The McGovern-Fraser reform of 1971 2. The Winograd Commission (1978) 3. The Mikulski Commission (1981)

What are the ballot access barriers against third party candidates?

1.51 different sets of bureaucratic hurdles. 2.Number of necessary signatures varies. 3.Who is eligible to sign a candidate's petition varies.

How have the political parties changed in recent years?

1.Better leadership 2.Better financing 3.Technological changes

How are delegates selected for the national conventions?

1.Caucuses 2.Allocation by Primary/Selection by Caucus 3.Allocation by Primary/Selection by Candidates 4.Pure Primary

Court Requirements for Redistricting

1.Contiguity 2.Compactness 3.Historical connectedness

How do the media "vet candidates? Who do they cover?

1.Experience 2.Money 3.Organization 4.Electability (poll standing)

What are the Campaign Finance Law barriers against third party candidates?

1.FECA acknowledges major parties and provides public funds for their presidential campaigns and conventions .2.Minor parties can qualify, but only receive funds after the fact.

What effects did the Federal Election Campaign Act have?

1.Huge increase in number of interest groups (PACs) 2.Huge increase in money in election campaigns 3.Soft money funneled through the political parties

What are the main provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002)?

1.Increase in individual contribution levels ($2,000 per candidate per campaign, indexed for inflation: $2,600 for 2013-14) 2.Outlaws soft money to national, state, and local parties 3.Limits soft money spent by PACs and outside interest groups

What were the effects of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act?

1.Increase in money in politics 2.Increase in 527 groups

How might we reform the parties?

1.Increase programmatic cohesion 2.Increase accountability 3.Increase representativeness 4. Better means of communication between party and public 5. More reliable mobilization efforts by local parties.

Factors for elections

1.Incumbency 2.Name recognition 3.Job performance 4.State of the economy 5.Candidates 6.Campaigns

What are the main provisions of the Federal Election Campaign Act (1971, 1974)?

1.Limits on individual contributions ($1,000 per election, per campaign) 2.Limits on candidate expenditures (ruled unconstitutional in Buckley v. Valeo, 1976) 3.Definition and regulation of Political Action Committees (PACs) 4.Disclosure requirements for candidates and parties in federal elections 5.Establishment of Federal Election Commission (FEC) 6.Public financing of Presidential Elections

Why have machines disappeared?

1.Never all that common to begin with 2.Hurt by civil service reforms that protected city employees 3.Hurt by legislation and court decisions on ballot practices and party activity 4.Hurt by unionization of public employees 5.Hurt by expansion of the economy and federal services (reduces the attractiveness of city employment and enhanced alternatives)

What else do we know about the presidential nominating system?

1.Nominating contests are front-loaded 2.Momentum matters•"The Dynamics of Presidential Primaries" (Bartels) 3.Front-runners tend to win 4.Party still matters, but perhaps in a different way•"The Party Decides" (Zaller, et al.)

Why is our political class much more polarized today?

1.Nomination of candidates in primaries and caucuses .2.Redistricting to eliminate competitive seats (no need to appeal to middle). 3.Contemporary media (need for exciting story lines, hot rhetoric, arguments). 4.Highly competitive elections increase apparent stakes/possibilities, encourage over-heated claims.

What are the characteristics of primaries?

1.Non-Partisan—need 50% to win; if not, twice as many candidates advance to general election as there are seats. 2.Blanket—top-two voter-getters advance to the general regardless of party affiliation. 3.Partisan

What are the characteristics of the primary electorate?

1.Older 2.Stronger party ID 3.More engaged and interested 4.More single-issue voters 5.More ideologically extreme?

What's wrong with the political parties?

1.Organizations too fragmented, decentralized, incohesive. 2.In government, undisciplined and prone to behave as free-agents. 3.In electorate, campaigns are uncoordinated, poorly designed strategically, improvisational, and not too rational. 4.In recruitment, either too controlled or poorly controlled. 5.In leadership selection, too expensive and unlinked to party organization.

Resources and Strategy

1.Parties provide labor for mobilization, but the candidates also command their own organizations for this. 2.Parties provide capital, expertise, and information. 3.Parties help with targeting, voter lists, polls, issues, opposition research.

What is the evidence of party strength in congress?

1.Party Voting—a majority of Democrats opposing a majority of Republicans. 2.Party Unity—percent of members voting in agreement with a majority of their party on party votes. 3.Party Cohesion—the frequency with which party members of the chamber vote with the majority of their own party on roll call votes.

How do we determine the number of delegates each candidate gets to the national conventions?

1.Proportional representation (w/ threshold) 2.Bonus (proportional representation + winner take more) 3.Loophole (winner-take-all) 4.Pledged party and elected officials 5.Unpledged

What are the constitutional biases against third party candidates?

1.Single-member, Simple plurality system 2.Presidential Election system--Electoral College

What are the loopholes of the Federal Election Campaign Act?

1.Soft money 2.Independent expenditures 3.Bundling

What does the President's success with Congress depend on?

1.Support from your own party .2.Support from the opposing party. 3."distance" or "conflict" between parties as they vote on presidential initiatives.

Without party ID, how do voters decide who to vote for?

1.Viability 2.Electability 3.Issue agendas 4.Issue positions 5.Candidate experience, traits

How are delegates selected for the national Republican conventions in Texas?

108 delegates chosen from CDs (3 from each) •If candidate gets >50%, he wins all 3 •If candidate is only one getting <20%, he wins all 3 •If two candidates top 20%, winner gets 2, runner-up gets 1 •If no one gets 20%, each of top 3 get 1 each 39 delegates chosen from the statewide vote •If you get over 50%, you win all 39 •If not, proportional division among al getting over 20% •If no one gets 20%, proportional among all.

How are delegates selected for the Democratic national conventions in Texas?

230 delegates up for grabs •127 delegates awarded based on the results of the primary •42 awarded from the convention system beginning with the precinct conventions after the polls close on primary night •61 slots are reserved for party and elected officials

What has been the dominant method of determining candidates historically?

Conventions

What is Dark Money?

Dark Money refers to political spending meant to influence the decision of a voter, where the donor is not disclosed and the source of the money is unknown. Depending upon the circumstances, Dark Money can refer to funds spent by a political nonprofit or a super PAC. Here's how: •Political nonprofits are under no legal obligation to disclose their donors. When they choose not to, they are considered Dark Money groups. •Super PACs can also be considered Dark Money groups in certain situations. While these organizations are legally required to disclose their donors, they can accept unlimited contributions from political non-profits and "shell" corporations who may not have disclosed their donors, in these cases they are considered Dark Money groups.

Gerrymandering

Drawing the district lines can be done in a way to maximize (or minimize) the seats that a party gets per vote

What the "A Rush to Judgement" problem?

In addition to a campaign season that begins ludicrously early, the primary elections can be over all too quickly. Candidates who do well, or better than expected, in first two states of Iowa and New Hampshire coast forward on a surge of momentum and a cushion of free media, into a rapid-fire series of primaries to follow. This slingshot effect removes all opportunity for deliberation and reconsideration.

What became the dominant method for selecting candidates by the 1970s?

Primaries

What developed during the Progressive era as a way to curb the influence of political machines?

Primaries

State Party Organizations today

Republican parties tend to do more than Democrats because they have more money (although the average Republican contribution is actually less than the Democratic average).

What is the "Inter-regional Primary Plan" reform?

Six groups of primaries or caucuses would be scheduled between March and June. On each date, a state or group of smaller states from one of six geographic regions of the country would go together.

What is the "American Plan" reform?

Starting with small states and working towards large ones, the American Plan also incorporates random order to afford big states the chance to go early as well.

What is the "Regional Lottery Plan" reform?

State order would be decided by lottery on New Year's Day. Two small states would be randomly selected to go first, followed by four regions also determined randomly.

What is the "Texas Plan" reform?

States are divided into four rotating groups with equal number of both electoral votes and total number of states per each group to provide an equal number of predominantly Republican states and predominantly Democratic states.

What is a 527 group?

Tax-exempt organization organized under Section 527 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C, 527). A 527 group is created primarily to influence the selection, nomination, election, appointment or defeat of candidates to federal, state or local public office.

What was the Citizen United Decision (2009)?

The non-profit group Citizens United wanted to air a film critical of Hillary Clinton and to advertise the film during television broadcasts in apparent violation of BCRA. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held that portions of BCRA limiting groups from spending money in political campaigns violated the First Amendment.

What is a 501 (c) (6) group?

These are business leagues, chambers of commerce, real estate boards and boards of trade, which may engage in political activity, as long as they adhere to the same general limits as 501(c)(4) organizations. Donations to these groups are not tax-deductible.

What is a 501 (c) (4) group?

These are commonly referred to as "social welfare" organizations. They may engage in political activities, as long as these activities do not become their primary purpose. The IRS has never defined what "primary" means, or how a percentage should be calculated, so the current de facto rule is 49.9 percent of overall expenditures, a limit that some groups have found easy to circumvent. Donations to these groups are not tax-deductible.

What is a 501 (c) (5) group?

These are labor and agricultural groups and may engage in political activities, as long as they adhere to the same general limits as 501(c)(4) organizations. Donations to these groups are not tax-deductible.

What is a 501 (c) (3) group?

These organizations operate for religious, charitable, scientific or educational purposes. These groups are not supposed to engage in any political activities, though some voter registration activities are permitted. Donations to these organizations are tax-deductible.

What is the "National Plan" reform?

This plan calls for a national primary where voters can vote once between January and June and ballots are counted and tallied at the start of each month.

What is the "Delaware Plan" reform?

This plan relies on "backloading" the primary schedule, that is, allowing less populated states to go first and the most populated to go last.

What is the "One Day National Primary" reform?

This plan simply calls for primaries and caucuses in all states on the same day.

What is the "rotating regional plan" reform?

Under the proposal, the country is divided into four regions - Northeast, Midwest, West, and South, which take their turns voting first, then one region per month from March to June.

What is the "Chaos and Political Consequences" problem?

With every state party, in conjunction with the legislature, free to schedule their own contests, any semblance of a cohesive national schedule rapidly falls into disarray. This year, the DNC and RNC found themselves in a battle with their own state parties. In fact the Democrats were caught in a fight with two swing states. Scheduling changes can also be made by lawmakers to help or hurt certain candidates.

What is the "Voters cut out" problem?

With so few states in possession of a meaningful vote during the primaries, much of the country's voters never get to participate in a way that can affect the outcome. The issues of concern to politically important states are elevated on the agendas of presidential candidates at the expense of other issues important to the nation.

The Populists (Peoples' Party)

•1892-1896 •First organized as Framer's Alliance in Lampasas •Anti-elites, railroads, commercial interests •Opposed gold standard, favored income tax •Support in west, midwest

The Socialists

•1901-1956•Bad timing-Democratic co-optation after Great Depression •Internal issues -Split in the left-wing after WWI, Russian revolution -Split w/ Trotskyites in 1937 -Split after 1956 over unification w/ Democrats

The Progressives

•1912-1924 •Women's suffrage •Campaign finance reform, worker's comp, progressive income tax, social security •Support in upper midwest

The Social Prophets

•1936 •Father Charles Coughlin (nationalization of banks) •Dr. Frances Townsend (old age pension) •Huey Long ("share the wealth")

George Wallace

•1968•Former Alabama governor •American Independent Party •Conservative on race, social issues •Southern state appeal

John Anderson

•1980 •Illinois Republican congressman •Lost in primaries to Reagan •Ran as centrist alternative to Carter and Reagan

Ross Perot

•1992, 1996 •Texas billionaire •Reform Party (1996) •Ran on deficit reduction, can-do ability, ending grid-lock

Ralph Nader

•2000, 2004 •Green Party, Reform Party •Ran on opposition to business, pro-environment

How might we reform congressional parties?

•All Senate and House leadership positions consolidated into one leadership committee. •Caucus meetings more important, frequent, and with binding decisions.

New Style path to power:

•Announce your candidacy and hit the "grip and grin" circuit. •Pound the pavement, take out mortgages, identify someone or some group who can back you financially. •Develop personal following, identity. •Contest the primary. •Win the primary and advance to the general election with your campaign team. •Contest the general election.

What are some handicaps on potential third party candidacies?

•Campaign Resources •Media Coverage •Unqualified, Unknown Candidates •Negative Attitudes towards Third Parties

How might we reform the nominations of political parties?

•Closed primaries. •More pre-primary conventions. •National presidential primary.

Conditions facilitating machines:

•Competitive elections •Mass suffrage •Parochial social context •Not exclusively urban or northern

The Libertarians

•Conservative on economic issues •Moderate/liberal on social issues

What are the major party strategies for beating third party candidates?

•Cooptation •Delegitimizing Candidates

Why does divided government matter?

•Divided government thwarts "responsible" party government. •Divided government is inefficient.

What are the conditions for third party success?

•Economic crisis •Agricultural crisis •Prominent, well-known candidate at the head of the ticket •Major party coalitional split

What are the costs of mistakenly embracing the extent of polarization?

•Ignore more sophisticated voting and regional analyses. •Overlook the significant number of "purple" states and counties (Washington gubernatorial election). •Accept dubious interpretations of voting and policy debates ("moral values" voters in 2004) •Miss opportunity for moderate, centrist candidates (Christie, Bayh, etc.)

What are the causes of divided government?

•Incumbency advantage •Balancing theory •Differential issue criteria

What is the incumbency advantage?

•Insulation of the House prevents realization of popular electoral trends .•Empirical evidence doesn't support this argument. ØDemocrats tended to win open-seat races in the 1980s and 1990s despite not having incumbency advantages. ØRepublicans tended to win these races in the 2000s.

What were some third parties in the Civil war era?

•Liberty Party (1840-1848) •Free Soil Party (1848-1852) •American Party "Know Nothings" (1854-1856) •Constitutional Union (1860)

Is there as much political polarization as people claim?

•Little polarization in public opinion on major issues. •People's CHOICES are extremely polarized (Bush job approval, presidential trial ballots). The people being analyzed are much more polarized, and voters respond to this. •There has been partisan sorting over the past few years. Fewer liberal Republicans and conservative Democrats. So partisans are further apart. But even this partisan polarization is less than typically assumed.

What are some platform reforms for political party reforms?

•Members of Congress active in writing platforms. •Party council to adopt and interpret them. •State platforms to be adopted after the national platform. •Platform binding on party office-holders. •Members of Congress denied chairs if they oppose the platform.

What are some organizational reforms for political parties?

•National party council of 50 members w/ power to adopt platforms, recommend candidates for Congress, and discipline state and local parties. •Professional staff for the national committees. •National committees more representative of party strength. •Smaller, more frequent conventions.

How do Parties matter congressionally?

•Offer campaign resources and fundraising. •Help with committee or sub-committee assignments. •Encourage/discourage primary challenges. •Shepherd critical legislation on behalf of the member .•Parties have almost no power to

Biases of Activists:

•Older •More partisan •More psychologically involved •More efficacious •Stronger parties = weaker biases

What are the benefits of being a 501 (c) organization/political nonprofit?

•Operate without incurring tax liability. •Mask the true nature of a highly political organization through non-disclosure. •Ability to disguise the true nature of a highly political organization through non-disclosure .•Take donations from individuals and corporations that may not want shareholders or customers to know they're taking a stand on a controversial topic. •Disclose financial activity long after it has taken place.

Why Care About Party Organizations?

•Organizations insure stability and accountability •Organizations make for responsive government (collective, not individual, outcomes)

Main incentives of political machines

•Patronage jobs •Purchase of services or goods on government's behalf •City regulation of economic activity

Why are staffers the most interesting component of modern day party politics?

•Politicians' staff come from the professionalized legislature. Lots of cross-over with party organization/staff .•People serve as campaign staff, not just legislative staff.

What does the President do as a party organization leader?

•Presidents raise money, campaign, and set agendas for the party's other candidates. •How much coordination is there? What kind of party building is going on?

What does the President do as the director of the executive branch?

•Presidents, especially those facing a hostile Congress or bureaucracy, seek to implement policies by making political appointments to the bureaucracy (about 20% of appointments are political) .-Nixon did this in the 1960s and 1970s. -Reagan raise it to an art-form in the 1980s .-More of an issue for Republicans, as they see the bureaucracy as hostile.

The Green Party

•Pro-environment •Suspicious of business, commercial interests •Liberal on social issues

The Dixiecrats

•Strom Thurmond (Dem-SC) •1948 •Split w/ Democrats over race and civil rights issues •Conservative on social issues •Southern state appeal

Characteristics of political machines:

•Substantial autonomy in its operation •Durability •Hierarchical internal structure •Control over nominations •Overall control of city or county government •Reliance upon material incentives to build loyalty and support

What are Super Pacs?

•Super PACs are a relatively new type of committee that arose following the July 2010 federal court decision in a case known as SpeechNow.org v. Federal Election Commission .•Technically known as independent expenditure-only committees, super PACs may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, associations and individuals, then spend unlimited sums to overtly advocate for or against political candidates. Unlike traditional PACs, super PACs are prohibited from donating money directly to political candidates, and their spending must not be coordinated with that of the candidates they benefit. Super PACs are required to report their donors to the Federal Election Commission on a monthly or semiannual basis - the super PAC's choice - in off-years, and monthly in the year of an election.

Examplesof Political Machines:

•Tammany Hall (New York City) •Pendergast Machine (Kansas City) •Curley Machine (Boston) •Thompson-Daley Machine (Chicago)

Changes in the system have been driven by what two developments?

•Technological developments in campaigning created a whole cadre of "specialists" (pollsters and consultants). •New cadre of activists and volunteers responsible for mobilizing voters developed

American parties have no formal membership.

•The formal organizational unit of the American parties is the county. •The key organizational level is the precinct, where voting occurs. •The key element to party organization is the office-holder.

What does it mean for the President to be the Constituency leader of his party?

•The president crafts an electoral coalition that is broader than that of his party .•Draws in independents and defectors from the other party. •He can direct or mobilize these supporters to advance his policy agenda. •This can broaden the party or create tension.

Old Style path to power:

•Vie for endorsements or support of key party officials •Network, pick your spots •Secure the nomination •Run in the general election

What are Differential Issues?

•Voters have different issue criteria for executive elections compared to legislative elections. •Voters prefer Republicans in executive races. •Voters prefer Democrats in legislative races.

What is the Balancing Theory?

•Voters intentionally split their ballots to achieve divided government. •Rational choice perspective. •Seems unlikely, although the number of voters necessary to make this work is relatively small.