Party Systems Linkage Institutions Political Parties Party Systems

Party Systems Linkage Institutions

Political Parties Party Systems Why do we only have two political parties?

Two Party System Political Parties

Party Systems Two Party System Two major political parties dominate the government All of nearly all elected officials are representatives of one of these parties Other parties may exist but their candidates are unlikely to win Party with the most control becomes the “majority party” and the other party is the “minority party”

Party Systems Two Party System In the US Two Party System Historically the US has always been dominated by two political parties When there are changes one major party supplants an existing major party No third party has ever won a presidential election or majorities in either house of Congress

Party Systems Why? Two Party System Parties begin to develop in the debate over the ratification of the constitution – there were only two positions to take: Ratify it or don’t They are Basically two main American ideologies, and so parties have adopted policies to appeal to these two large groups Parties have to appeal to huge groups of people to win. They have to adopt really broad platforms in order to attract diverse groups of people to support them

Party Systems Elections - POTUS Two Party System The president is elected by Electoral College – that makes it basically 50 different state elections Only a person from a party with large organizations in every state Smaller parties are hard to get started because this level of organization is hard to build Voters are conditioned to think in terms of two parties – they see voting for a third party as “helping their enemy”

Party Systems Elections - Congress Two Party System The House of Reps is divided up into 435 districts and each district selects only one person to represent it. The two major parties are most likely to win first place in any of these districts Smaller parties may have some support everywhere, but are not likely to have the MOST support in any district

Party Systems Plurality Two Party System The person with the MOST votes wins – it does not have to be a majority “Winner takes all” - meaning the seat in Congress or all the Electoral Votes for president – there is no benefit for anyone other than first place Voters understand this system and it makes them even less willing to vote for a third party

Party Systems Advantages Two Party System It promotes centrism and compromise since the parties have to appeal to diverse groups It leads to stability since the same couple of groups trade power back and forth They are simpler to govern because compromise only requires one other group There are fewer voting choices for the people to have to learn about

Party Systems Disadvantages Two Party System They limit alternative viewpoints other than the two main parties It leads to more voter apathy because people don’t like the choices Can lead to less compromise and more polarization when there is less participation from moderates

Party Systems We’re Stuck! Two Party System It would take an amendment to change Congressional elections It would take an amendment to change the Electoral College Amendments have to be proposed by 2/3 of Congress. 100% of Congress is made up of Democrats and Republicans They won’t change the system because it benefits them.

Multi Party Systems Political Parties

{Political Parties Multi Party Systems An electoral system with three or more political parties that regularly win There is lots of competition between smaller groups Parties have to work harder to appeal to specific interests of people. National politics will dominate more than local concerns

{Political Parties Multi Party Systems They appeal to specific interests of voters Negative advertising won’t work because taking votes away from your competition does not necessarily help you

{Political Parties Proportional Representation Multi Party Systems In systems like this, people vote for parties in elections, not individual candidates This rewards not just first place, but even parties with small support The seats in a “Congress” are divided among the parties according to the proportion of the vote they got in the election The party chooses the members to hold office.

{Political Parties Coalitions Multi Party Systems If no party can get 51% of the votes in an election, they will form a “coalition” with another party The make a temporary alliance with another party to have 51% This leads to compromises between parties

{Political Parties Elections Multi Party Systems Parties that get even small percentages of the votes will get SOME seats in government The voters get to choose who they truly support without having to consider how it might help their competition Voters tend to be satisfied because they have lots of distinct choices

{Political Parties Advantages Multi Party Systems Helps smaller groups and minority groups because they can form smaller parties that represent them Encourages participation because there are even more chances for people to get involved People are able to vote for whichever party they really support

{Political Parties Disadvantages Multi Party Systems Less stable because different groups can gain control Harder for any party to have a majority, and coalitions can dissolve easily Harder to make policies because you may have to compromise with multiple groups instead of just one

One Party System Linkage Institutions

Political Parties One Party System Only one political party exists They have outlawed any political competition (other parties) They face no competition and don’t have to respond to the people.

{Political Parties Advantages One Party System It’s very stable – there is no change in government There is less conflict among groups of people because all of them are forced to come together in one party The government is very strong

{Political Parties Disadvantages One Party System IT does nothing to respond to the people It’s not democratic – there are no choices for people at all

Bigly Ideas Beliefs & Behaviors

History Wrap Up Why US 2 party system? Advantages/Disadvantages Multi Party Systems One Party System Focus on these things: