Political Parties, Campaigns and Elections in American Politics

Political parties are groups of people with aligned beliefs who seek power in the government. The function of a political party is to organize people who have similar ideologies to elect like-minded candidates to influence the government’s choices. Political parties stand behind candidates who are running for office.

Political parties were not part of the original U.S. government. During the American Revolution, colonists resisted the formation of political parties. There were no political parties when George Washington, the first American president, took office. Washington strongly opposed political parties. In his farewell address as president, he warned against “the baneful effect of the spirit of the party.” He cautioned that political parties would attempt to change the government for their own gain, not for the good of the people.

The first political parties in the United States were based on ideas about how much power the federal government should have. As the Framers crafted the U.S. Constitution and discussed how the powers of the government should be separated, citizens who felt strongly about this issue formed factions.

In 1787, the Federalist Party formed, led by Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of the Treasury at the time. The Federalists argued for a strong central government and supported the U.S. Constitution. The people in this group tended to favor business and industry. Years later, Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State, led a group of Anti-Federalists, who argued for states holding more power than the central government. They wanted the federal government to have as little power as possible. They called themselves Democratic-Republicans. The people in this group tended to earn money through agriculture.

Today, the two most powerful political parties are the Republicans (also known as the GOP) and the Democrats. The core beliefs of each party are important to their identities. Democrats are generally more liberal, or progressive, and support an active government. Democrats argue for laws that protect the middle class and minorities and the federal programs that help them. Two of the most well-known presidents from the modern Democratic Party are Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy. Republicans are generally considered more conservative and seek a limited federal government. They favor laws that protect business owners and tend to support the idea that the government should not be responsible for solving social problems. Two of the most well-known presidents from the modern Republican Party are Dwight D. Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan.

There are smaller minor parties, but it is difficult for their candidates to win national elections. For that reason, they are sometimes called third parties. The Libertarian Party is a third party that argues for very little government intervention in citizens’ lives. The Green Party promotes environmentalism and social justice. There have been many third parties in America’s history. President Theodore Roosevelt formed the Progressive Party, also known as the Bull Moose Party, because he was considered “strong as a bull moose” at the time.

Interest groups are groups that attempt to change public policy because of a shared concern on a particular issue. This may be a problem they want fixed or a cause they think does not get enough attention. They seek to change government policy to solve the problem. Interest groups usually do not have their own political candidates. Instead, they spread their message through the media and by working with candidates and elected officials.

Lobbyists are people who aim to persuade public officials, usually legislators in Congress, to vote a certain way. Often, lobbyists are paid to push the agendas of businesses, industries, and interest groups so that laws can be changed to work in their favor. Some citizens and policymakers believe that lobbyists have too much power over government because they can draw more attention to their causes than individual citizens. Both individuals and lobbyists can appeal to the government in various ways—by writing letters, protesting, and speaking to politicians about their wants.