PARTIES - are major parties declining in power or renewing their power? Flashcards
PARTIES IN DECLINE
100-party system and decentralisation
America’s size and diversity means that parties have to meet the needs of each state separately - one rigid set of policies may not be accepted in all the states.
Power is decentralised because each level of organisation runs their own campaigns and forms their own party platforms.
PARTIES IN DECLINE
National Committees and their conflicts with state parties
RNC + DNC!
They both have elected chairpeople who help organise the committee to help the party win the race.
They help raise funds for presidential elections, they set the rules for primaries, they organise the national conventions etc.
2008 RNC ruled all states must hold their contests after Feb 5th to prevent front loading and if the candidates didn’t comply, they’d lose all their delegates - Florida and four other states didn’t comply and they lost half their delegates.
PARTIES IN DECLINE
Differences in National and State Party Platforms
2012 Rep National Party Platform where there was firm opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion.
Nevada Rep Party Platform saw the state convention vote to remove the state’s opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion in 2014.
PARTIES IN DECLINE
David Broder | The Party’s Over: The Failure of Politics in America
how have party leaders lost influence over candidate selection?
Broder argues that in the late 1960s and 1970s, the parties lost influence in areas such as nominations, communications, organisation, and finance.
PARTIES IN DECLINE
How have party leaders lost influence over candidate selection?
The McGovern-Fraser Commission recommended far greater transparency over how states choose their delegates, giving all members, and the public, a say in the selection.
This led to the widespread use of primary elections for selecting candidates.
This impacted the leadership of the party because previously, the party had a significant contribution to the large rallies and any communication that candidates had with the voters.
Television and the internet has revolutionised communication, allowing candidates to use their own social media to take control of their campaign, regardless of whether it coincides with the perspectives of their party leadership.
PARTIES IN DECLINE
How has finance contributed to the decline of party power?
The Federal Election Campaign Act 1974 limited donations to parties to $34,400 and limited party donations to candidates to $5000
Candidates now have to work harder to raise their own donations and so are not as indebted to the party.
The Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act 2002 banned soft money (money not regulated but donated to the party) and so parties were once again limited in how they could help finance the candidates (following the Brock reforms and the Federal Election Campaign Act 1979 which allowed individuals, unions, and corporations to give unlimited donations to parties ‘as long as it wasn’t used for elections’ !!!)
PARTIES IN RENEWAL
How have party leaders INCREASED their influence over selection of presidential candidates?
Democratic Party doings
Hunt Commission 1981, done so following bitter disputes at the Democratic National Convention in 1980.
this restored some party influence by reserving space at the convention for the newly established super delegates, which is a status given to ‘distinguished party leaders’, members of the DNC, reps and senators - they would ALL have a vote in the national convention.
2008 - primaries are interesting because neither Clinton or Obama had enough pledged delegates to win, but the superdelegates liked Obama and voted for him so he became the Democrat canidate.
PARTIES IN RENEWAL
How have parties increased influence over campaign finance
PACs or leadership PACs set up by high-profile incumbents who are strong fundraisers can be used to spend on ads supporting other candidates or in establishing newer adverts.
PARTIES IN RENEWAL
What procedural changes in Congress have increased Republican (and Dem) party influence?
1995 - House Republicans adopted a new rule that seniority would no longer be the method determining who would be committee chairs, and that these chairs would be rewarded to those who were loyal and voted in line with the party.
PARTIES IN RENEWAL
Partisanship and how this exacerbates party power
117th Congress
Dec 2021 - Whistleblower Protection Improvement Act sought to limit presidential power.
The vote was done primarily on party lines, with ONE republican representative voting in favour.
PARTIES IN RENEWAL
Has partisanship increased in recent decades?
YES
Between the 60s and 70s, voters didn’t feel as though there were any substantial differences in what the Republicans and Democrats stood for.
Since then, people believe there are huge differences.
Split ticket voting was huge in the 60s and 70s.
PARTIES IN RENEWAL
Why is the theory of party decline less convincing today?
In 2012, only 27 split their ticket in House districts.
In 1972, 192 split their ticket in House districts.
