POLITICAL PARTIES
REVISION
, Developments since the 1970s
Since the 1970s a number of factors have led to strengthening of national party structures:
• New campaign finance laws resulted in money flowing to the national parties and the c
themselves rather than being raised by the state or local parties
• Television provided a medium through which candidates could appeal directly to voters
• Organisation of US political parties reflects the
out state and local parties that had traditionally been the medium
federal structure of government • Emergence of sophisticated opinion polls allowed candidates to directly “hear” what vo
• Parties are largely decentralised-organised mainly
without actually meeting them
at the state level • New technology allowed national parties to set up sophisticated fundraising and direct
operations-later also via social media
• Parties become more ideologically cohesive
• National parties played a larger role in recruitment and training of congressional candid
*Meant that party organisation became more top down rather than bottom up
PARTY ORGANISATION
Current state of play
Each party has a national committee with offices in Washington DC. But
members are representatives from the 50 state parties
• Headed by national chair-mostly rather anonymous bureaucrats who • The founding fathers seemed wary of the idea of
are seldom in public eye parties, or factions, and yet resigned to their
• National party conventions-held in each presidential election existence.Jefferspn shared the opinion that
year[every 4 years] "men” by their constitutions are actually divided
• Also congressional party leadership with committees to oversee into two parties” in 1824,
policy making and campaigning • The 2 party system has become a hallmark of US
• State parties headed by state party chairs-hold state party parties, embodied today by the Democratic
conventions Party, with roots in the party of Jefferson and
• Grassroots level: congressional district,county,city,ward and precinct Madison and the Republican party founded
level organisation in1854
REVISION
, Developments since the 1970s
Since the 1970s a number of factors have led to strengthening of national party structures:
• New campaign finance laws resulted in money flowing to the national parties and the c
themselves rather than being raised by the state or local parties
• Television provided a medium through which candidates could appeal directly to voters
• Organisation of US political parties reflects the
out state and local parties that had traditionally been the medium
federal structure of government • Emergence of sophisticated opinion polls allowed candidates to directly “hear” what vo
• Parties are largely decentralised-organised mainly
without actually meeting them
at the state level • New technology allowed national parties to set up sophisticated fundraising and direct
operations-later also via social media
• Parties become more ideologically cohesive
• National parties played a larger role in recruitment and training of congressional candid
*Meant that party organisation became more top down rather than bottom up
PARTY ORGANISATION
Current state of play
Each party has a national committee with offices in Washington DC. But
members are representatives from the 50 state parties
• Headed by national chair-mostly rather anonymous bureaucrats who • The founding fathers seemed wary of the idea of
are seldom in public eye parties, or factions, and yet resigned to their
• National party conventions-held in each presidential election existence.Jefferspn shared the opinion that
year[every 4 years] "men” by their constitutions are actually divided
• Also congressional party leadership with committees to oversee into two parties” in 1824,
policy making and campaigning • The 2 party system has become a hallmark of US
• State parties headed by state party chairs-hold state party parties, embodied today by the Democratic
conventions Party, with roots in the party of Jefferson and
• Grassroots level: congressional district,county,city,ward and precinct Madison and the Republican party founded
level organisation in1854
