The political party system is a situation where the party is central in how power is attained and used in a democratic structure. The history of the American party system provides a unique context in which the conceptualization of what a party system means. Professor James Ceaser’s summary of how the political party system came to illustrate critical factors that are applicable universally.
Political parties have been influential in the American political system, and this has been reflected in institutions, political processes and the general outlook of the United States’ democracy. One such factor is how parties modify constitutional systems. The current constitutional structure is majorly due to how parties over the years continued to refine various aspects of the law. For example, the Presidential System in the US is a creation of the party system, based on several versions fronted by parties at various junctures in the US history. This, as Professor James notes, is different from the European System where the control of the government is attained based on majority seats a party has; otherwise referred to as the party government or constitutional parliamentary system.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The political party system in the US is uniquely constructed by parties owing to several factors. These include the following;
Lack of constitutional Status of political parties: Parties in the US don’t have constitutional status. However, they are embedded in the American political system. Professor James notes that they are not mentioned anywhere in the Constitution. The perspective, nonetheless of whether parties will change is critical. The party system continues to redefine this aspect based on political issues facing the country.
Type of presidential nomination is based on traditions rather than the recommended legal Electoral College: The Electoral College as the 4th component of the constitution worked as an institution for the entire selection of the President. Its role has significantly diminished. Professor James gives an example of the 2016 Presidential Elections as having the worst choices regarding presidential choice, type, and quality of campaigns. Had it been up to the Electoral College as it should legally be, then this couldn’t be the case.
Parties continuously develop to shape the political order: Throughout the history of US politics, people have always come together with the aim or purpose of forming the political mandate to suit political situations of the day. Professor James provides the example of the Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans who came together out of fear of subversion of the constitution by Alexander Hamilton’s programmes that seemed to them as heading down an unconstitutional path. If the constitution grants excessive power, then there is a threat to political order. The political system checks this using political parties.
Aspects of the principle of the party being above ambitions of the individual : The political systems enable parties to compete based on values and ideology rather than goals of an individual leading these parties. These party principles’ supremacy has ensured the positive reforms in the US’ political system over the years.
Communication is critical to any political process : Parties exploit it to do anything and ultimately survive. A political party system guarantees the essentialism of communication and the content, mode, and structure. The aspect of disclosure is critical in party systems since it drives political agenda such as socialization, public participation, and ideology synchronization.
Parties construct a nationalist perspective: Professor James notes that elections in the second half of 19th century in the US involved several offices in a separate context from the previous elections. Therefore, parties brought the aspect of tying these officeholders together introducing a national perspective of how the country wants to go. The election of Jefferson in 1890 is described in this context.
Parties are regarded as more important than the political system : The Federalist party died out naturally by the end of the 1820’s. According to Professor James, the “era of good feeling,” that referred to going back to the original constitutional design where the Electoral College would determine the election of the president came forth. He further states that this era was celebrated and welcomed by many and in the elections of 1824, there was one party and no nomination process. The threat with this is that the country could fall apart due to how the president is chosen. A party system is thereby regarded as a way of addressing this problem. The parties at that moment were more important than the party system merely because they wanted to win, yet it is supposed to be the vice versa.
Parties deepen confidence: The fear of an over leaning central government, favoritism and interest seeking in politics threatens any political structure. Parties deepen confidence of nationals that common interest will be sought. While parties try to attain power, the competition that ensues leads to progressive and consultative service delivery.
Parties as nationalists and safe instruments : The American political tradition has made parties more national. This is especially true with the entry of the Republican Party in 1856. This party sought to streamline the party system differently. Professor James notes that the Republicans championed the push for all parties to be nationalist. Their ideology was that anything lesser than this would be unconstitutional. Parties are also regarded as instruments of keeping the country safe. Unsafe aspects are viewed to be political jeopardizing policies or actions that can harm the country.
The gap between the Executive and Congress being bridged by parties: The political party system has ensured that parties play a more crucial role in synchronizing political activities. Since both the president and the legislature seek mandates using parties, bonds are struck at that point. In the US, the Progressives have praised political parties as the bridge between these separate institutions. To them, this is important since the original constitution dispersed powers. This has been described as a Shift in controlling Parties. The new structure of the party is based on the feature of naturally following and coalescing around the president who is seen as a party leader and less on the Congress as it was before.
Complicated transformation of the legal status of political parties: While Professor James noted that the original Constitution does not recognize political parties, they have nonetheless developed, based on the party system in the US to construct legal identities. He notes that parties are different from what they were, giving the example of the Tea party to what they are today. There is a vast difference including the aspect of regulation from the authorities on how they conduct their functions.
The future of political parties, as Professor James, notes in wide. Questions concerning breaking up of parties and review of their structural elements remain critical in analyzing party systems. Other features include how parties will face challenges and new demands such as nomination processes and their uncertain legal status in the US.
