Party System

Parties Past   For and Against   Parties Today

Some notable pro's and con's have characterized American political parties past. You may recognize positions still held by modern day political parties. Here are a few highlights:

American Political Parties Past
Party Date Founded Description
Federalist 1794 Favored strong Federal Government; weaker State Government
Democratic-Republicans 1794 Favored strong State Government; weaker Federal Government
Anti-Mason 1827 Favored holding Party Conventions
Whig 1834 Favored national economic policies; anti-Andrew Jackson
Liberty Party 1840, 1844 Founded by abolitionists; placed slavery on the national political agenda
Free-Soil 1848 Opposed expansion of slavery into the territories
Know-Nothing 1849 Favored Protestant beliefs;opposed beliefs of Catholics and "foreigners"
Constitutional Union 1860 Favored following the Constitution; opposed fighting a Civil War over slavery issues
Greenback Party 1876, 1880,
1884		 Promoted Federal "greenback" dollars which supported working people; opposed backing dollars with gold, etc., which favored the wealthy
Prohibition 1876 Favored the prohibition of alcohol
Socialist 1904, 1908 Favored social revolution either through physical revolution or non-violently, through education
Progressive (Bull Moose) 1912 Supported Theodore Roosevelt; opposed child labor
Progressives (La Follette) 1922 Favored legislation to help the less priviliged; opposed Monopolies

Political Parties Today

Today, America is a multi-party system. The Democratic Party and the Republican Party are the most powerful. Yet the Reform, Libertarian, Socialist, Natural Law,  Constitution and Green Parties will all field candidates in the year 2000 presidential election. Regardless of their names, ideologies and candidates, political parties will play a major role in presidential elections in the new millenium.

 
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Last updated 03/06/2008