Third Party Realignment Analysis

The greatest reform of democracy came from the people pushing the boundaries of what a democracy should be—the Progressive Movement. If there is to be hope of abolishing partisan gerrymandering and bringing true voting equality, or at least moving toward equality, for the first time in U.S. history, it is going to require another social movement, similar to the Progressive

Thus, the belief that the polarisation of congress must have spawned from an increasingly divided electorate is too simplistic. Fiorina, Abrams and Pope (2006) alternately suggest that rather than ideological divisions increasing within the U.S. population, ideological consistency is increasing on a personal level for voters. This belief is supported by a decrease in split-ticket voting in congressional elections as constituents are now more likely consider their political views to be compatible with those of one specific party. In effect, this would cause conservative Democratic voters and liberal Republican voters to switch their allegiances, the likes of which did occur during the southern realignment that began in the

During the Great Depression from 1929 to 1939, workers lost their jobs as the demand for products went down and companies had to fire them to save money. Families were very poor and often had little food and other resources. The current president, Herbert Hoover, did little to help because he believed in Laissez Faire Capitalism, and thought the economy would eventually repair itself without any intervention from the government. Many Americans found fault with this, and expressed this distaste by doing things like name the shantytowns that evicted Americans lived “Hoovervilles”. The preceding president Franklin Roosevelt took immediate action to help Americans suffering in the Depression.

During the timespan of 1932 to 1940, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal essentially unified American party systems and drastically fabricated U.S. policies ideologically and economically, in view of the deal’s accumulative and substantial assistance to American citizens, in addition to mass government interference in economic regulation and reform. Due to the newfound principles of tolerance and sympathy for the American population, which consisted of differing ethnic backgrounds, clashing gender groups, and distinct social classes, the government under Franklin D. Roosevelt, began gearing its efforts upon aiding the people from the economic instability that resulted from the catastrophic Great Depression. This fresh mindset essentially

The second party realignment Sundquist focuses on is that of the 1890s. By the end of the Reconstruction period, the workingmen of the country became increasingly more interested in the economic issues that affected their livelihood, but the current party system was not arranged to be a representative of class interests (107). As economic issues caused growing tensions among the Democrats, a major realignment of party loyalties began to take its place. Using hypothetical scenario 3 of Sundquist’s conceptual model, a realignment occurred with the existing parties through the absorption of a third party. The workingmen organized the Populist party (formerly known as the Farmer’s Alliance) with the following demands: free silver, currency expansion

The two parties were the Republicans and the Federalists. The Republicans hoped government took a lesser approach to everyday life. Its individualistic perspective includes living in moderation, be tough, don’t spend more than you have to, and be honest. These lofty goals and ambitions were reasonable in the late 1700’s, early 1800’s, however, now most

Democrats, on the other had, tended to favor small government and states' rights. However, in translating these philosophies into policy, neither party was very creative or ambitious. Both Democrats and Republicans treated the majority problems of the Gilded Age

As a matter of fact, the factors, such as, emergence of third parties, ideological polarization, large percentages of the population shifting its partisan loyalties and unusual stress on the nation’s socioeconomic system, which constitute a critical election (as theorized by Burnham) were present in the 1896 election. First, a third party, the Populists emerged, as both the Democrats and Republicans vowed to uphold industrial interests. Then, the issues of currency between the gold and silver standard polarized both the Republicans and Democrats in ideologies. Also, the Republicans garnered a new conservative coalition, as urban, blue-collar Northerners, along with voters from the industrial East and Midwest shifted partisan loyalty.

Party strength is a measure of the ability of a party to get people to vote for its candidates. The post-World War II shift in party strength was part of a massive shift in policy over time. Scholars saw Republican politicians increasingly excel at getting elected at the local level (Lublin 2006), to offices in the state (Hayes and McKee 2007), and federal governments (Black and Black 2002, 1992; Shafer and Johnston 2006). It is difficult to see how the Republican Party would have become the majority in Congress in 1994 without the increased voting strength in the South. This marked a dramatic shift in national policy.

The Federalist and Republican parties, first formed in 1790. Did you know our first political party was Federalist and Democrat/Republican. Another fun fact, George Washington was the only president to never declare a party affiliation because they didn’t exist when he was elected into office. The formation of political parties caused United States of America to split. Despite bearing some minor similarities, the differences between Federalist and Democratic/Republicans are clear.

“Political parties” did not begin until the late 1600s, yet It all really began in 1787, when the so called “political parties” started calling themselves Federalists. This was when the first political party started in the United States. In 1796, everything got bigger and more productive. That’s when everyone gathered around Jefferson, those members called themselves Democratic-Republicans. A political party is a gathering of individuals who meet up to contest elections and hold control in the government.

I don’t think that the United States is in political realignment, because the circumstances surrounding president Trump’s election, and the actions performed during his presidency, don’t align with the definition of political realignment. First of all, political realignment has been speculated at most elections, dating back to 1932. However, prior, it was estimated that realignment occurred about every thirty years. Based on the fact that we haven’t had it in more than 80 years, maybe it’s time for it to happen. Part of the definition is that “a realignment gives rise to new dominant voter cleavage over interests, ideological tendencies, or issues”(543).

Despite being the only major political party the Democrats experienced a lot of conflict among themselves Eventfully a party known as the Whigs developed. Both the Democrats and Whigs wanted to expand the numbers of voters. They accomplished this by eliminating several voting restrictions put on white males. Like the Federalist the Whigs supported northern merchants. Besides supporting merchants, the only thing members of the Whig party really had in common was there opposition to the Democratic party.

Republicans vs. Democrats When the United States of America was founded, George Washington warned against the formation of political parties. By the time the second election came around there were already two political parties, the Federalist and Democratic-Republicans. These parties eventually turned into the Republican and Democratic parties we have today. While these parties have shifted to become almost polar opposites politically, they still share some common goals.

Finally, it will be argued that the modern political party system in the United States is a two-party system dominated by the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. These two parties have won every United States presidential election since 1852 and have controlled the United States Congress since 1856. The Democratic Party generally positions itself as centre-left in American politics and supports a modern American liberal platform, while the Republican Party generally positions itself as centre-right and supports a modern American conservative platform. (Nichols, 1967)