Political Parties in the USA - Realignment

Seminar paper from the year 2004 in the subject American Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 1,7, Technical University of Chemnitz, course: PS - Understanding the USA, 7 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: The following term paper deals with the phenomena of realignment in the political party system of the United States. Although America's party system is the oldest in the modern world it is marked by a deep distrust in parties leading back to the founding fathers who said that parties would only bring riots and chaos to the state. Political parties have existed on national level since the 18th century. And the two-party system which had been crystallised during this time, is still working in present days. The political parties in the United States became the mean for purpose; parties were to elect, to mobilise voters, not to govern There have already been amazingly modern party structures in the 1840s, a whole generation before such structures came up in Great Britain. In 1848 the first National Committee was built by the Democratic Party. And until the 20th century direct premises have been introduced. However, nothing much changed in the party's organising structures since that time, and until today financial support is mainly made by a small group of giant donations. But one of the biggest differences to European parties is that American parties do not have mass memberships. The voters are ideological linked to their party, but they are not fixed to it. This link could be a basis for such a phenomenon as the realignment is. Realignments are essential for the American two-party system, and during history there have been four such realignments. In the following I will discuss the historical background of realignments and the Party Systems and I will try to find arguments whether there is a present realignment in favour to the Republican Party.

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