POL 1133 Final Exam Review (Fall 2018) 211581

Functions of political parties - -1. recruiting candidates for public office 2. organizing and running elections 3. Presenting alternative policies to the electorate 4. Accepting responsibility for operating the government 5. acting as the organized opposition to the party in power. From the 1790s until roughly the 1970s, parties relied on party members and volunteers to perform a number of tasks related to elections and campaigns. These traditional party functions are sometimes called labor-intensive politics because, historically, the lack of communication and printing technologies (such as radio, television, the photocopier, and the personal computer) meant that parties had to enlist a lot of people or expend a lot of labor to accomplish these tasks. The parties selected candidates to run for office. Party leaders (most often elected officials) decided who would be put forward as candidates.4 Parties organized candidates' campaigns. In the past, the parties controlled their candidates' campaigns. Parties sent party workers into neighborhoods to knock on doors and inform potential voters about the candidates and issues. Many times, the entire party slate would share the platform and speak at the same event. Parties could raise money directly and then distribute it to different candidates' campaigns. By controlling the purse strings, a party could keep its candidates in line and under control. Parties organized candidates' campaign rallies to allow candidates to meet and talk with voters. Before candidates campaigned for themselves, the party would produce campaign literature, arrange speakers on behalf of the candidates, and (from the early 1900s on) arrange speaking tours for the candidates. Page 385 Inconceivable as it may be today, the parties—not local governments—printed election ballots. Starting in the 1930s, parties hired pollsters to conduct survey research for their candidates. Candidates were beholden to the party for such poll data. Finally, the parties ran the governments to which their candidates were elected. This was especially important after the introduction of the spoils system (or patronage system) around 1830. Under the spoils system, the victorious political party gave government jobs to party supporters. When Andrew Jackson won the presidency in 1828, recognized party members filled government positions. The higher the office was, the more important the party member chosen to fill it. The role of parties in our political system has changed in many way