-
The Founding Era
Founders did not approve of political parties because they threatened the legitamacy of the government. The first political paries were based on geography and social class and aimed to keep their opponents from taking office.
Federalists- wanted a strong central government, economic development based on industry and believed the constitution was open to interpretation.
Democratic Republicans- wanted more power to the states, viewed the nation as farmers and did not interpret the constitution. -
Period: to
Political Parties of America
This is a timeline of The Development of Political Parties in America, ranging from The Founding Era (1760) to Divided Government (Present). -
The Jackson Era (Era of the Common Man)
In this time period, more people were politically active. States had ended the property qualifications for voting and congressional caucuses were replaced by locally run party conventions. Jacksonian democrats were spported by the West, South, small farmers, the working class, and immigrants, but opposed by the Whig Party. Therefore, parties were organized starting with the people instead of the politicians (grass root movement). -
The Civil War Era
The older parties were divided by the issue of slavery. How one felt about the war was how they determined their party affiliation. Those who favored war tended to be Republicans and those who opposed tended to be Democarats. Because parties were regionalized, competition came from withtin parties which resulted in factions, the progressives in the Republican Party. -
Reform Era
The Progresssive goals were to reduce the influence of the political parties including patronage, corruption, and overall partisanship behaviors. As a result, they achieved their goals, but if a political party couln't nurture candidates, what would? -
New Deal Era
Part Realignment occures when voter loyalty shift in response to critical events. The New Deal Coalition was when the South, labor, urban voters, immigrants and ethnic minorities turned into Democrats because of the New Deal program offered a way out of poverty. Conservative southern Democrats became known as dixicrats, they voted for democrats. -
Nixons Southern Strategy
The Republican Party was able to make inroads into Democratic support by appealing to traditionally conservative voters in the South; this strategy paid off for Reagan and both Bush's as many Dixicrats moved back to the Republican Party. -
Divided Government
Divided Government occurs when one party controls the White House and the other controls Congress. During the last quarter of the 20th Century, divided government became increasingly common. Divided Goverment often leads to legislative grid-lock, when the White House and Congress are at odds.
