scholarly journals South Carolina: Party Development in the Palmetto State

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 91-108
Author(s):  
Robert P. Steed ◽  
Laurence W. Moreland
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
Southern States ◽  
The Past ◽  
Party Development ◽  
Party Activists ◽  
Partisan Realignment ◽  
Local Party

Paralleling developments in other southern states over the past three to four decades, South Carolina’s political system has undergone dramatic change. One of the more significant components of this change has been the partisan realignment from a one-party system dominated by the Democrats to a competitive two-party system in which Republicans have come to hold the upper hand. This increased electoral competitiveness has been accompanied by an increased organizational effort by both parties in the state. An examination of local party activists in 2001 points to a continuation of this pattern over the past ten years. In comparison with data from the 1991 Southern Grassroots Party Activists Survey, the 2001 data show the following: (1) the Republican Party has sustained its electoral and organizational gains of recent years; (2) the parties continue to attract activists who differ across party lines on a number of important demographic and socioeconomic variables; (3) there has been a continued sorting of political orientations and cues marked by sharply different inter-party ideological and issue positions; (4) the Democratic Party has become more ideologically homogeneous and more in line with the national party than previously; and (5) since 1991 perceptions of factionalism have declined in both parties, but still remain higher among Democrats than among Republicans.

scholarly journals Introduction: Studying Southern Political Party Activists

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
John A. Clark ◽  
Charles Prysby
Keyword(s):  
Political Party ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
The Political ◽  
Party Organization ◽  
Southern Politics ◽  
Party Organizations ◽  
Southern States ◽  
The Past ◽  
Party Activists

The political changes that have occurred in the South over the past several decades have affected the political party organizations in the region. A region once marked by a weak and highly factionalized Democratic Party organization and an almost non-existent Republican Party organization now has two significant party organizations operating in each state. Examining the development of party organizations in the region should tell us much about both political party organizations and southern politics. This study, the Southern Grassroots Party Activists 2001 Project, focuses on political party activists active at the county level. Over 7,000 activists in the eleven southern states were surveyed in 2001. This study is linked to the 1991 Southern Grassroots Party Activists Project, which surveyed a similar group of activists, using a similar questionnaire. The following articles both analyze the 2001 data patterns and compare the 2001 results to the 1991 patterns.

scholarly journals Louisiana: Two-Party Growth and Increasing Party Polarization

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 53-68
Author(s):  
Robert E. Hogan
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
The State ◽  
Policy Positions ◽  
Party Polarization ◽  
Party Organizations ◽  
The Past ◽  
Local Organizations ◽  
Party Activists ◽  
Liberal Policy

This paper examines party organizations in Louisiana from the perspective of those at the grassroots. An assessment of local organizations as well as the attitudes of the party activists them-selves shows that politics in this state are in a period of transition. Over the past decade, Republicans have continued to make significant electoral gains; however, the major changes have occurred within the Democratic Party. The demographic transformation of Democratic activists and their correspond-ing support for more liberal policy positions contributes to an increasingly polarized party system in the state.

The Paradox of Partisanship

2020 ◽  
pp. 35-57
Author(s):  
Lee Drutman
Keyword(s):  
Political Thought ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
American Political Science Association ◽  
The Political ◽  
American Political Thought ◽  
The Right ◽  
American Political Science ◽  
Science Association

This chapter examines the paradox of partisanship. In 1950, the American Political Science Association put out a major report arguing for a “more responsible two-party system.” The two parties—the Democratic Party and the Republican Party—were then largely indistinguishable coalitions of parochial local parties, and the political scientists argued that too little, rather than too much polarization, was the problem. This sets up a paradox: Some party division is necessary, but too much can be deadly. Various traditions in American political thought have tried to resolve this paradox. Antipartisans have urged consensus above all. Responsible partisans have urged competition above all. Meanwhile, bipartisans have urged compromise above all. Consensus is impossible. However, both compromise and competition are essential to democracy. Only the neglected multiparty tradition can solve the paradox with the right balance of competition and compromise.

Fighting Elections: Cross-Level Political Party Integration in Ontario

2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 871-892 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Lennox Esselment
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Political Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Conventional Wisdom ◽  
The Other ◽  
Federal System ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
Party Activists ◽  
Local Party

Abstract.Conventional wisdom about the structure of political parties in Canada has emphasized their confederal nature. In other words (and the New Democratic party excepted), parties with identical partisan complexions at the federal and provincial levels are thought to operate in “two political worlds.” This paper argues that election campaigns are a key integrating link between parties. How they fight elections reveals extensive cross-level co-operation, particularly through shared activists (local party activists, party staff and party professionals) and technological expertise. This has the effect of shrinking the space between party cousins and forges unity between them. While there are certain obstacles to electoral collaboration, there are also incentives for these parties to work to maintain and strengthen their ties with their partisan cousin at the other level. These findings make an important contribution by directly challenging the notion that Canada's federal system has led to increasingly disentangled political parties.Résumé.L'opinion communément admise au sujet de la structure des partis politiques au Canada a mis l'accent sur leur nature confédérale. En d'autres termes (exception faite du Nouveau Parti démocratique), on considère en général que les partis à caractère partisan identique au palier fédéral et provincial fonctionnent dans «deux mondes politiques à part». Le présent article avance que les campagnes électorales constituent un facteur d'intégration clé entre les différents niveaux d'un parti. La façon dont un parti dispute une élection révèle un haut degré de coopération entre les organisations provinciales et fédérales, surtout du fait qu'ils partagent des militants communs (militants locaux, personnel politique et professionnels du parti) et leur expertise technologique. Ce phénomène tend à rétrécir l'espace entre cousins du même parti et à bâtir l'unité d'organisation entre les deux niveaux. Même s'il y a des obstacles inévitables à la collaboration électorale, les partis cousins ont de bonnes raisons de veiller à maintenir et à renforcer leurs liens réciproques. Ces conclusions apportent une contribution importante à l'étude des partis politiques, en contestant directement l'idée que le système fédéral au Canada a encouragé les partis politiques de même allégeance à mener leurs activités de manière indépendante.

The White Primary: 1944–1948

1948 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 500-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Douglas Weeks
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Political Action ◽  
The United States ◽  
Present Moment ◽  
The South ◽  
Circuit Court ◽  
Southern States ◽  
Or Practice ◽  
Primary Rule

The closing chapter in the history of the white primary in the South has seemed since 1944 to be in process of being written. In that year, the United States Supreme Court, by invalidating in Smith v. Allwright the white primary rule of the Texas state Democratic convention, dealt a stunning, if not immediately mortal, blow to this most significant political custom or practice of the Southern states. The refusal of this court on April 19, 1948, to review a federal circuit court decision invalidating the white primary arrangements of South Carolina, created in 1944 to circumvent the effect of the Allwright decision, seems to have administered the judicial coup de grâce. It would, however, be unsafe to predict when “finis” may be set down for all states, political areas, counties, and voting precincts where by one means or another the Negro has long been barred from participation in the all-important primaries of the Democratic party. The remaining suffrage requirements, registration restrictions, and election provisions, and the political and administrative methods of applying them which still are employed in some Southern states and in parts of others in order to render it difficult for Negroes to vote will not be immediately eliminated. Moreover, the effects of political action have not been fully tested by the Democratic leaders of the South. At the present moment, plans for united efforts on their part are under consideration; and these could have far-reaching results before the end of the current presidential election year. Whatever the abstract justice of the situation, traditional attitudes and customs cannot be uprooted easily and have a way of resisting judicial or legislative fiat, particularly when it is honestly felt by many that such fiat has been imposed from the outside and by people unaware of the difficulties and adjustments involved.

scholarly journals Southern Politics After the Election of Presidential Clinton: Continued Transformation Toward the Republican Party?

1993 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 197-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles D. Hadley
Keyword(s):  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Electoral College ◽  
The South ◽  
Southern Politics ◽  
Southern State ◽  
White House ◽  
Presidential Candidates ◽  
Southern States ◽  
Democratic Vote

To whom does the South belong politically, now that an all-southern ticket has reclaimed the White House for the Democratic party? Review of 1992 voting returns for national, statewide, and legislative races in the South, contrasted with those from earlier presidential years, lead to only one conclusion: the South continues to move toward the Republican party. The Clinton-Gore ticket ran behind its percentage of the national vote in most southern states, as well as behind all Democratic candidates in statewide races, and would have won without any southern electoral votes; whereas Bush-Quayle ran ahead of their percentage of the national vote in every southern state except Clinton’s Arkansas, while Republicans gained seats in southern legislatures and congressional delegations. It is suggested that southern electoral college votes won by Democratic presidential candidates in 1976 and 1992 hinged upon Democratic vote-getters in races for statewide offices in each state carried except the presidential candidates’ home states.

The Independent Republican

2019 ◽  
pp. 169-182
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Racial Reconciliation ◽  
Social Equality ◽  
Political Ideas ◽  
Social Conservatism ◽  
Radical Reconstruction

This chapter sheds further lights on the dynamics of Delany’s controversial views on social equality and racial reconciliation; his prescriptions and strategies for attaining justice and equality; his views on the shortcomings of Radical Reconstruction; his persistent critique of the Black-Radical Republican Party alliance, his growing alienation from the party; and reactions of ideological opponents and former associates to his controversial and provocative political ideas. The documents expound on the circumstances leading to Delany’s brief alliance with South Carolina State Conservatives, Independents and Ex-Confederates. The alliance symbolized the utilitarian and conflicted nature of his political thought. The documents highlight as well Delany’s political and social conservatism and rationale for the decision to switch to the conservative Democratic Party. They attest to his commitment to racial cooperation, compromise and belief that severing ties with the Radical Republicans, deemphasizing social equality, and embracing the Democratic Party would advance the interests of blacks.

The Conservative Republican

2019 ◽  
pp. 89-168
Keyword(s):  
Political Philosophy ◽  
South Carolina ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Racial Reconciliation ◽  
Social Equality ◽  
Citizenship Rights ◽  
Radical Reconstruction

Documents in chapter three introduce readers to the intricacies and challenges of the first phase of Martin Delany’s entry into the politics of Reconstruction in South Carolina. They elucidate his political philosophy and visions; his advice to blacks on how best to maximize the benefits of their newly acquired citizenship rights; his ambivalent views on black political rights; his controversial stand on social equality; his scathing rebuke of black political aspirations and demands; and insistence that blacks attained some pre-qualification before aspiring for certain political positions. The documents also underscore the conflicting reactions of contemporaries to Delany’s controversial and at times provocative critiques of Radical Reconstruction. Ultimately, his advocacy of compromise, accommodation and racial reconciliation alienated him from the ruling radical Republican Party, prompting his decision to switch party allegiance and join the Democratic Party. The documents represent the conflicts Delany’s ideas provoked and the essential pragmatism of his thoughts.

Partisan Tumult on the Floor: The Speakership Elections of 1849 and 1855–1856

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffery A. Jenkins ◽  
Charles Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
Congressional Elections ◽  
Whig Party ◽  
New Parties ◽  
History Of ◽  
American Party

This chapter examines the speakership elections of 1849 and 1855–1856, the most chaotic instances of officer selection in the history of the House of Representatives. It considers how the Second Party System weakened and eventually collapsed as the slavery issue overwhelmed the interregional partisanship that had been in place for two decades. It also discusses the emergence of new political parties, such as the Free-Soil Party, the American Party, and the Republican Party, that created new avenues for coalitional organization. In particular, it looks at the rise of the Republican Party as the primary opposition party to the Democrats. Finally, it describes how the rising popularity of the new parties in congressional elections affected politicians in both the Whig Party and the Democratic Party.

The Rise of Political Action Committees

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily J. Charnock
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Interest Group ◽  
Republican Party ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
Political Action ◽  
Political Action Committees ◽  
Congress Of Industrial Organizations ◽  
Conservative Coalition ◽  
American Party

This book explores the origins of political action committees (PACs) in the mid-twentieth century and their impact on the American party system. It argues that PACs were envisaged, from the outset, as tools for effecting ideological change in the two main parties, thus helping to foster the partisan polarization we see today. It shows how the very first PAC, created by the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in 1943, explicitly set out to liberalize the Democratic Party by channeling campaign resources to liberal Democrats while trying to defeat conservative Southern Democrats. This organizational model and strategy of “dynamic partisanship” subsequently diffused through the interest group world—imitated first by other labor and liberal allies in the 1940s and 1950s, then adopted and inverted by business and conservative groups in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Previously committed to the “conservative coalition” of Southern Democrats and northern Republicans, the latter groups came to embrace a more partisan approach and created new PACs to help refashion the Republican Party into a conservative counterweight. The book locates this PAC mobilization in the larger story of interest group electioneering, which went from a rare and highly controversial practice at the beginning of the twentieth century to a ubiquitous phenomenon today. It also offers a fuller picture of PACs as not only financial vehicles but electoral innovators that pioneered strategies and tactics that have come to pervade modern US campaigns and helped transform the American party system.

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