POLS 1113 1st EditionLecture 6Political Parties & RealignmentsFactions (any group that places its own interestsabove the aggregate interests of society) The Federalist papers Federalist 10. States “ by a faction I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting toa majority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse ofpassion, or ofinterest adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the aggregateinterests of the community.” Factions wereto be controlled Pernicious to the public order Tyranny of the majority Controlling bycounteractivepluralism Federalist 51. “Ambition must be made to counteract ambition” A republican system ofchecks and balances Majority rule with minorityrights Factions and Parties Founders were concerned about factions Did not really address political parties Factions and political parties are related What is a Political Party- Parties involve three basic featuresA Labela. Party identification-republican, democrat, libertarian party, green party b. A one word identifier of policy positions An Organization a. National level- providea broad partyplatform of issues, run the convention b.State level- organize statewide races, organize statedelegates to nominating conventions Set of leadersa. The president as party leader b. Majority and minorityleaders in congress Anthony Downs: An Economic Theory Parties seen through the economic (business) perspective Political parties are in competition for voters a. They compete withissue positions These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.Each new position tends to attract new voters but it also risks alienating current voters Party leaders Maintain the platform of issues Coalition maintenance Electoral Rules and Parties Senate Winner takes all Plurality of the state 51% of state was certain President Winner take all Majority of the electoral collegeThe American Party system 49% of popular support can get you nothing Electoral goal established at 51% Parties gather together broad coalitions of interests to achieve a working majority Two Party System- a system where two major political parties dominate politics within a government. One of the parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually referred to as the majority party while the other is the minority. There can be no middle ground between both parties because American parties never capture exactly what the people want Political Realignment Theory V.O. Key’s “critical elections” “A type of election in which there occurs a sharp and durable electoral realignment between the parties” On some occasions the party coalition become dated A system wide restructuring of the coalitions takes place Factors for Critical Elections of RealignmentsThe rise of a new political issue/ controversy Must cut across existing party positions Must be powerful and salientDepends on the remaining strength of party positions – usually affects one party more than the other one Parties try to straddle the cross cutting issue Victory over the issue outweighs party