Guide to U.S. Political Parties

Edited by:

Marjorie R. Hershey - Indiana University - Bloomington, USA

April 2014 | 456 pages | CQ Press

This one-volume reference presents the major conceptual approaches to the study of U.S. political parties and the national party system, describing the organization and behavior of U.S. political parties in thematic, narrative chapters that help undergraduate students better understand party origins, historical development, and current operations. Further, it provides researchers with in-depth analysis of important subtopics and connections to other aspects of politics.

Key Features:

Thematic, narrative chapters, organized into six major parts, provide the context, as well as in-depth analysis of the unique system of party politics in the United States.
Top analysts of party politics provide insightful chapters that explore how and why the U.S. parties have changed over time, including major organizational transformations by the parties, behavioral changes among candidates and party activists, and attitudinal changes among their partisans in the electorate.
The authors discuss the way the traditional concept of formal party organizations gave way over time to a candidate-centered model, fueled in part by changes in campaign finance, the rise of new communication technologies, and fragmentation of the electorate.

This book is an ideal reference for students and researchers who want to develop a deeper understanding of the current challenges faced by citizens of republican government in the United States.

Available Formats

ISBN: 9781452267807 Hardcover Suggested Retail Price: $200.00 Bookstore Price: $160.00

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About the Editor

Contributors

Acknowledgments

Marjorie Randon Hershey and Edward M. Burmila

Introduction

Who is Included in a "Party"?

Different Definitions of "Party"

Central Themes in the Study of Political Parties

Plan of the Guide

Part I. What Are Parties For?

Mark D. Brewer and Jeffrey M. Stonecash

1. Parties and the Respone to Change: The Representation and Mobilization of Divisions in a Nation

The Nature of Party Coalitional Change

Parties, Conflict, and the Challenge of Social Change

Partisan Responses to Change

Conclusion

Jamie L. Carson

2. Political Parties: Recruiting Leaders and Structuring Elections

Relationships Between Political Parties and Their Candidates

Challenges to the Parties' Role Posed by Progressive Era Reforms

Unintended Consequences of Candidate-Selection Reforms

Decline and Resurgence of Parties' Roles in Nominating Candidates and Structuring Elections

How the Parties Regained an Important Role in Campaigns

Conclusion

Frances E. Lee

3. Parties as Coordinators: Can Parties Unite What the Constitution Divides?

Parties as Centralizers: Theory and Practice

Building Majorities: Procedural and Substantive

Enacting Policies

Do Parties Promote Policy Coherence?

Bridging the Separation of Powers?

Promoting Accountability

The Parties and the Constitution

Hans Noel

4. What the Parties Stand For

Understanding Changes in Party Philosophies

The First Party System (1789-1824): The Great Principle

The Second Party System (1828-1854): Reemergent Conflict

The Third Party System (1854-1892): The Irresistible Force of Slavery

The Fourth Party System (1896-1932): The Progressive Era

The Fifth Party System (1932-) and Beyond: Liberalism Versus Conservatism

Party Ideologies in the Twenty-First Century

Paul A. Beck

5. Parties in the American Political Environment: Shaped, Adaptive, and Shapers

The Constitutional Framework and Political Parties

The Uniqueness of the American Parties

Environmental Change and Shifting Powers Within Parties

The Lens Reversed: Parties Shaping Their Environments

Emerging Environmental Challenges to the Parties

Conclusion

Part II. Historical Development of the Parties

6. The Origins and Development of U.S. Political Parties, 1790-1861

Clashing Views About Government

The Parties’ Coalitions

The Parties Fade

A Populist Party System

The Rise of Van Buren

Party Organizations

The Whigs and the Democrats

Sectional Tension

New Parties Arise

Conclusion

Jeffrey D. Grynaviski

7. Political Parties in the Age of Industrialization: From Their Golden Age Through the Progressive Era

The Golden Age of Parties

Political Party Organization

Voter Behavior

The Progressive Era

Conclusion

Kristi Andersen

8. Constructing a New Majority: The Depression, the New Deal, and the Democrats

Party Politics in the 1920s

A Changing Electorate

The Great Depression and Party Politics

The Mechanics of Political Change: Mobilization and Conversion

The Democrats Organize a Coalition

Party System Consolidation

Conclusion

Jeffery A. Jenkins

9. Partisanship, Sectionalism, and Race: Civil Rights and Party Development From the 1950s Through the 1970s

Background to the Era

The Eisenhower Years

The Kennedy/Johnson Years

The Nixon/Ford Years

The Carter Years and Beyond

Conclusion

David Karol

10. Parties Revised and Revived: Democrats and Republicans in the Age of Reagan, 1980 to 2000

Parties in the Electorate: The End of Democratic Dominance

Changing Party Coalitions

The Parties and the Presidency

The Parties in Congress

The Democratic Response to Reagan

Third-Party Developments in the 1980s and 1990s

Conclusion: Parties Revised and Revived

Casey B.K. Dominguez

11. Polarization and Volatility: The State of the Party System in the Twenty-First Century

Political Events in the First Decade of the Twenty-First Century

The Party as Organization

Party in the Electorate

Party in Government

Understanding Outcomes

Prospects for Future Change

Conclusion

Part III. Party Organizations

Daniel DiSalvo

12. The Nature of Party Organizations

Party Structures

Party Development

Party Organizations in Congress

Conclusion

Vladimir Kogan

13. From Machines to Service Centers: The Evolution of State and Local Political Parties

The Anatomy of the Party

Machine Politics in the City

Era of Political Reform

Adaptation and Resurgence: Party Activities in the Modern Era

Survival in the Twenty-First Century: Emerging Challenges

Daniel J. Galvin

14. The Transformation of the National Party Committees

The Timing and Process of Party Change

The Republican National Committee’s Transformation Into a Service Institution

The Democratic National Committee’s Delayed Transformation Into a Service Institution

Conclusion

Paul S. Herrnson

15. The Impact of Reform on National Party Financing and Campaigning

The Institutional Setting

Party Finance During the Golden Age

Party Finance and the Federal Election Campaign Act

Party Finance and the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act

Party Finance in the Post-BCRA Era

Political Parties as Enduring Multilayered Coalitions

Geoffrey C. Layman

16. Party Activists

Perspectives on Parties and Party Activists

Amateurs and Professionals: The Political Incentives and Norms of Party Activists

Party Activists and Partisan Change

Activists and Party Polarization

Conclusion

Ronald B. Rapoport and Justin de Benedictis-Kessner

17. Vote-Seeking Third Parties in the Twentieth Century

Categorizations of Third Parties

Factional Parties

Regional Versus National Parties

Characteristics of Candidates and Campaigns

Third Parties and the Institutional Environment

The Institutional Context

Opportunities for Success: The Political Environment

Comparing the Campaigns

The Dynamic of Third Parties

Part IV. Parties in the Electorate

Marc J. Hetherington

18. The Nature of Partisan Identification

What Is Partisanship?

The Distribution of Partisanship

Where Party Identification Comes From

Beyond Socialization and Groups

The Effects of Party Identification

Conclusion

Logan Dancey

19. Party Identification and Issue Attitudes

The Partisan Divide

How Voters Align Party and Issues Positions

The Normative Implications

Conclusions and Remaining Questions

Russell J. Dalton

20. Independents and American Elections

The Evidence of Weakening Party Ties

The Consequences of Dealignment

Independents and Electoral Politics

Barbara Norrander

21. Primary Elections and Caucuses

Direct Primaries

The Presidential Nomination Process

Concerns About Primary Elections

Helmut Norpoth

22. Partisanship in General Elections

Party Identification and the Vote

Rivals of Party Identification

Issue Opinions in General Elections

Candidate Perceptions in General Elections

The Impact of Issues and Candidates

Cycles and Equilibrium in General Elections

Conclusion

Thomas M. Carsey

23. Differing Views on Polarization of the Electorate

Is the Electorate Polarized Now?

Causes of Party Polarization in the Electorate

The Consequences of Party Polarization in the Electorate

Conclusion

Part V. Parties in Government

Bruce I. Oppenheimer

24. Ebbs and Flows in the Power of Congressional Party Leaders Since 1910

Moving in Opposite Directions, 1910–1915

Republican Dominance Followed by Democratic Control, 1919–1937

The Conservative Coalition and the Independent Power of Committee Chairs, 1937-1970

The Return of Stronger Parties, 1970 to the Present 317

Conclusion

Jennifer Hayes Clark and Gerald C. Wright

25. Differences in Party Leadership and Control Among the U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and State Legislatures

Legislative Leadership: Structure and Organization

Where’s the Party? Assessing Contemporary Debates of Party Power

Leadership, Gatekeeping Rights, and Majority Roll Rates

Analyses and Results

Conclusion

Jesse H. Rhodes

26. What Influence Do the Parties Have in the Presidency and the Bureaucracy?

Parties, the Presidency, and the Constitution

The Rise of Political Parties and the Transformation of the Presidency

The Progressive Movement and Challenges to the Nineteenth-Century Party System

The Modern Presidency and the Transformation of the American Party System

From the High Tide of the Modern Presidency to the Reemergence of Party Politics

Conclusion

David R. Jones

27. Partisan Control of Government and Public Policy

Party Differentiation in Policy Preferences

Presidential Relations With Copartisans

Policy Outcomes Under Divided Versus Unified Government

Policy Outcomes Under Democratic Versus Republican Control

Changes in Party Control

Conclusion

Marjorie Randon Hershey and Jessica Gall Myrick

28. Political Parties and the Changing Media Environment

Relationships Between the Parties and the Media

How the Party-Media Relationship Has Changed

How Parties Use the Digital Media

How the Media Constrain the Parties’ Goals

Conclusion

Part VI. Parties in Their Environment

Richard M. Skinner

29. Political Parties and Interest Groups: Parties as Networks

Groups and the Party Networks

Members of the Party Networks

Interest Groups and Political Parties: Personnel and Resources

Groups as Policy Demanders

Party-Group Tensions

Conclusion

John J. Coleman

30. The Standard of Responsible Parties

The Debate Over Responsible and Functional Parties

Challenges Facing Responsible Parties in the United States

Episodes of Responsible Party Government

The Current Era and Party Responsibility

Polarization and the Responsible Party Ideal

Conclusion

Lawrence R. Jacobs

31. Political Parties and Economic Inequality

Political Parties and Economic Structure

Information and Power

So What?

Disciplined Parties and Democracy

Marjorie Randon Hershey

Conclusion

Selecting Leaders

Policy Coordination Within Government

Holding Leaders Accountable

What Happens Next?

Summing Up

Index

Key features

Key Features:

Thematic, narrative chapters, organized into six major parts, provide the context, as well as in-depth analysis of the unique system of party politics in the United States.
Top analysts of party politics provide insightful chapters that explore how and why the U.S. parties have changed over time, including major organizational transformations by the parties, behavioral changes among candidates and party activists, and attitudinal changes among their partisans in the electorate.
The authors discuss the way the traditional concept of formal party organizations gave way over time to a candidate-centered model, fueled in part by changes in campaign finance, the rise of new communication technologies, and fragmentation of the electorate.

This book is an ideal reference for students and researchers who want to develop a deeper understanding of the current challenges faced by citizens of republican government in the United States.

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