WEEKS 2-3: HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PARTY SYSTEM

Many of the Founding Fathers distrusted the passion of the ignorant masses, and they favored the rule by a benevolent well educated and prosperous elite- themselves. As already indicated, many distrusted the existence of factions or political parties that could divide Americans. Most states had property holding or wealth requirements in order to vote or to hold office. Some “elites” were motivated by a religious obligation: “To whom much is given, much will be required” (Luke book 12:48). Politics was not a profession, and salaries for offices were small. Today there is some criticism of the intentions of the Founders, as many owned slaves and protected slavery, though others argue that the protections for slavery found in the U.S. Constitution were necessary to get the southern states to ratify the Constitution.

Washington was above party and tried to unify all Americans behind the new federal Constitution by appointing a diverse cabinet, yet factions or parties quickly arose. Alexander Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury favored a government led by the rich, well-born, and intelligent. He wanted a stronger national government which would promote a diversified economy with more business and industry and not just agriculture. To promote industrialization and national expansion, he persuaded Congress to enact a national bank. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson preferred a nation of small farmers, where people would own land and therefore have a stake in the government and in society. He opposed a national bank. This dispute between Hamilton and Jefferson in the national government caused political parties to first arise at the federal level with Hamilton’s supporters calling themselves Federalists and Jefferson’s supporters calling themselves Republicans (no relation to the current Republican Party).

The First Party System was from 1796 until 1828. Vice President John Adams was a Federalist President and his party also controlled Congress until the end of that century, when the Republicans started a monopoly on control of the Presidency starting with Thomas Jefferson. Desiring a stronger federal government which would promote industry, the Federalists were also more elitist and sympathetic to the British monarchy, thereby favoring a pro-British foreign policy. Republicans favored agricultural interests and therefore states’ rights. They liked the anti-monarchy revolutionary French republic and pursued a pro-France foreign policy. Due to economic differences between the regions, Federalists were stronger in the northeast while Republicans were stronger in the South. Republicans were the majority party because most Americans were employed in agricultural pursuits. The Federalists were also hurt by their anti-democratic image, the anti-immigrant Alien, Sedition, and Naturalization Acts that they passed in 1798 when we almost went to war with France, and the anti-war Hartford Convention that some attended during the War of 1812. The Federalists also had weak local party organizations, the party was split between Adams and Hamilton supporters, and most Americans did not think of themselves as members of a party.

In this party system, candidates were nominated by legislative caucuses, but by 1824 the Republican caucus so dominated the Congress that other candidates refused to abide by its endorsement, so four candidates ran for the Presidency. The federal constitution merely says that the state legislatures will select the presidential electors, and some states did not provide for a popular vote for President. Candidate Andrew Jackson in 1824 won most states having a popular vote, but no candidate had a majority of the electoral vote, so the House of Representatives picked the winner. The House chose John Quincy Adams, as a third candidate Henry Clay backed him, as they both favored federal funding of internal improvements to promote national expansion. However, Adams named Clay Secretary of State, which was a steppingstone to the presidency at that time, so Jackson’s supporters called this a Corrupt Bargain (a stolen election). For the next four years, Jackson’s supporters opposed Adams’ administration.

The Second Party System was from 1828 until 1860. Andrew Jackson was a Democrat, but he was also a strong President. The four years before that era saw the dominant Republican Party split into two factions, the National Republicans of Adams’ supporters who favored internal improvements, and the Democratic Republicans of Jackson’s backers who favored a more direct democracy. When Jackson was elected President in 1828, his faction shortened their names to Democrats. Jackson was such a strong President that his opponents called themselves the Whigs, named after the anti-monarchy British party. Jackson as a Democrat favored agriculture, vetoed the Bank of the United States and opposed internal improvements which did not cross state lines, defied the Supreme Courts’ ruling in favor of native Americans, and opposed South Carolina’s nullification of the federal tariff. The Democratic Party itself was a more modern party that sought to expand its electoral appeal, so it welcomed Catholic immigrants into its party in northern cities. The Democrats also backed territorial expansion, and under President Polk the U.S. fought a war with Mexico and gained the southwest territory. Democrats were strongest in the South, while Whigs were strongest in the Northeast. Democrats were the majority party, winning all except two presidential elections when the Whigs nominated popular war heroes. Since a majority of Americans were still involved in agriculture, the Democrats were the majority party. The Whigs were also a broad coalition, being a pro-business party, having some southern planter support, sometimes being anti-Catholic and nativist, and being stronger in the northeastern region.

Jackson’s presidency is also known as a time of Jacksonian democracy, as democracy expanded in the nation. Jackson was a great believer in the common man, or at least the common white man. During this period, a more direct and expanded democracy emerged as: 1) property holding and religious requirements for voting and holding office were abolished by the states, so all adult white males could vote; 2) all states now provided for the popular election of presidential electors; 3) party nominations were now made by conventions rather than the legislative caucus, so party activists in addition to public officials could now help pick the party nominees; this period saw the rise of the national party conventions to pick presidential candidates; 4) modern campaign forms such as torchlight parades supporting candidates and candidates claiming to have been born in a humble log cabin emerged; 5) intensified campaigns emerged, as close competition between the parties existed, therefore voter turnout rose, and voters came to see themselves as Democrats or Whigs (party identification concept). Though owning slaves and fighting against native Americans, Jackson also fought duels to uphold his personal honor and that of his wife, and was a war hero. Today, Jackson’s weakness in the area of human rights has led historians to rate him poorly, and modern Democratic officials to shun him. Ironically, perhaps because of Jackson’s boldness and support for the “common man” over the elite, President Trump had a big picture of Jackson in the Oval Office.

The Third Party System was from 1860 till 1896, and it saw the rise of a new party, the Republicans, which replaced the old Whig Party. In the 1850s the Democratic Party became more and more associated with the South, as the two Democratic Presidents were seen as “northern men of southern principles.” Illinois Democrat Stephen Douglas wanted to build a transcontinental railroad from his state, and to get southern support he permitted a territory that was supposed to be closed off to slavery under the Missouri Compromise to be admitted as a possible slave state (as part of this Kansas-Nebraska Act, Kansas might be admitted as a slave state if the settlers there desired it). Also, a southern Democratic dominated U.S. Supreme Court rendered the Dred Scott decision, which held that slaves were not citizens and therefore could not petition the court for their freedom if they had entered a free state or territory; the court even held that slaves were property, the U.S. constitution protected one’s property, so Congress could not even outlaw slavery in the western territories (as it had in the northcentral territory under the Missouri Compromise). Enraged northerners left the Whig Party (a party of compromise on the slavery issue) and created a new Republican Party. That party’s conventions in 1856 and 1860 had no delegates attending from southern states, so when Republican Lincoln was elected President in 1860, the South seceded from the Union. In addition to being anti-slavery, the Republican Party was a party of northern industrialists who wanted the federal government to protect and promote big business interests in the name of national growth and expansion. The Democrats were stronger in the South, were the more pro-agriculture party, and were supportive of white southerners who after Civil War Reconstruction established a system of white supremacy. Neither party was the majority party during this period. Republicans won all except two presidential elections, as they more narrowly carried a greater number of states compared to Democrats, but Democrats usually controlled the House of Representatives as they easily won southern districts (where African Americans were increasingly disenfranchised).

The Fourth Party System was from 1896 until 1932, and the Republican Party was the majority party. Farmers hurt by the depression in the 1890s supported the Populist movement and party, which called for governmental regulation of railroads and other businesses, and the free coinage of silver (which would inflate the money system and make it easier to pay back their loans). The Democratic party absorbed the 3^rd party populists by nominating the populist William Jennings Bryan as their presidential candidate in 1896, but this made their party appear to be too agricultural. The Democrats weren’t able to attract blue-collar worker support, and business leaders threatened their workers with firings if Bryan was elected. Republicans became the clear majority party by increasing their vote totals in various northern states such as the northeastern and midwestern states, while Democrats became more confined to the South. Southern whites solidified their control of their local and state Democratic Parties by enacting even more racially discriminatory voting devices, such as the literacy test and poll tax. Republicans were the pro-business party, the party of an industrializing nation, and were strong in the North. Democrats were the more pro-agriculture party, and were strong in the South. Republicans won every presidential election except for two, when the Republican Party vote was split in 1912 between incumbent President William Howard Taft and previous President Teddy Roosevelt (running as a third-party candidate, thereby electing Woodrow Wilson). Republicans also pretty consistently controlled Congress.

The Progressive Era during this fourth party era was a middle-class reform movement that opposed powerful interests, such as big businesses and political bosses, and sought good honest government. It was so popular that both parties supported it- Republican Teddy Roosevelt and Democrat Wilson were both progressives. Progressives enacted an amendment requiring that states let the people vote for their U.S. Senators, plus an amendment requiring that they permit women (believed to be more civic minded) to vote. States enacted voter registration laws to combat voter fraud, and required parties to hold primary elections to select their nominees (striking at the power of party bosses who dominated the old convention-caucus system). Progressive policies included trust busting (breaking up business monopolies), conservation (national parks were created), and a federal constitutional amendment permitting a federal income tax. This new tax was very important in starting the expansion of the federal government.

The Great Depression occurred during Republican President Herbert Hoover’s term, and Republicans opposed federal governmental action to combat it, while Congressional Democrats backed federal relief efforts, seeking to increase unemployment and welfare benefits. Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) was elected President with an overwhelmingly Democratic Congress. This ushered in the Fifth Party System from 1932 through 1968, when Democrats won every presidential election except two (GOP war hero Eisenhower in the 1950s) and controlled Congress for all except four years. FDR’s New Deal liberal economic programs included relief (AFDC welfare, CCC conservation corps, PWA public works, WPA), recovery (NRA, ICC business regulations), and reform (Social Security, federal minimum wage, and NLRB protecting labor unions). Democrats expanded their Catholic and white southerner base to add blue collar workers, the low income, African Americans, intellectuals, Jews, and most average Americans. Republicans were the conservative party, more confined to the higher income and big business. The Democratic Party was such a dominant party that its broad New Deal coalition included liberal African Americans and conservative white southerners (both helped by liberal economic programs). As such, as late as 1960 congressional Democrats were led by Texans- House Speaker Sam Rayburn and Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson, though most senate Democrats were to the left-of-center.

The Sixth Party era is from 1968 to the present time, and there is no majority party. When Democrats became the majority party they finally had a lot of support in the north, so northern Democrats pushed their national party to become racially liberal. The 1948 national Democratic convention adopted a civil rights plank written by Minneapolis mayor Hubert Humphrey, and Presidents Kennedy and Johnson got Congress to enact the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Republicans meanwhile became even more consistently conservative, nominating conservative Barry Goldwater from Arizona as their presidential candidate in 1964. Those events started the exodus of white southerners from the Democratic Party, and African Americans starting in 1964 now began voting 90% Democratic. Meanwhile, Democrats were becoming consistently liberal on other issues as well. Democrats became viewed as more liberal on cultural and crime issues, being sympathetic to the protesters and rioters of the 1960s (who opposed police brutality, the Vietnam War, and our traditional society), so Republican Nixon got elected president in 1968. The Democrats also became pro-choice on the abortion issue which feminists liked, and pro-gay (LGBTQ) rights which was controversial among most voters until the Obama years. Democrats also became viewed as soft on national defense with the AFL-CIO refusing to endorse liberal McGovern in 1972 (so Nixon won a landslide re-election) and with Jimmy Carter's human rights policy “losing Iran” (and losing to Reagan in 1980).

Yet Republicans have their own problems of ideological extremism, being perceived by many as not only a party of the rich and big business, but also after absorbing the Religious Right as a party of intolerance towards gays and women’s rights (and after the January 6 Trump rally and riot, the party of insurrection).

Presidential elections have become so close that in the 21^st century there was 12 years of Republican Presidents and as of 2024 there will be 12 years of Democratic Presidents. Beginning in 1980 with Reagan’s election, control of Congress has also been a real tossup with Republicans today having a mere 3-seat margin in the House and Democrats having a 1-seat margin in the Senate (Vice President Kamala Harris has made history by casting 32 tie-breaking votes).

POLITICAL PARTY ERAS, SUMMARY CHART

First- 1796-1828	Second- 1828-1860	Third- 1860-1896	Fourth- 1896-1932	Fifth- 1932-1968	Sixth- 1968-
Federalists	Whigs	Republicans	Republicans	Republicans	Republicans
National Power	Anti-Jackson coalition	Anti-slavery	Pro-business	Conservative	Conservative
Pro-business	Pro-business	Pro-business	North base	Pro-business	dealignment (no majority)
Elitist	Nativist	North base	Majority pty.	High income	South base for pres.
Pro-Britain	New England base	Wins pres. elections
New England
Republicans	Democrats	Democrats	Democrats	Democrats	Democrats
States Rights	Agriculture	Agriculture	Agriculture	Liberal economics	Liberal
Agriculture	Catholics welcome	Anti-Radical Reconstructn	South base	New Deal coalition	dealignment (no majority)
Less Elitist	Territorial expansion	South base		Workers and low income
Pro-France	South base	Sometimes controls Congress		Majority pty.
South base	Majority pty.
Majority Pty.

(Source of lecture notes on the history of the American party system: American Political Parties: Social Change and Political Response,, Everett C. Ladd Jr., 1970, W.W. Norton and Co; Transformations of the American Party System, 2nd edition, Everett C. Ladd and Charles D. Hadley, 1978. W.W. Norton and Co; Dynamics of the Party System, James L. Sundquist, 1973, Brookings Institution)