POLI 100B Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Caucus, Plurality Voting System, Modern Liberalism In The United States
Document Summary
Throughout us history, we observe two parties competing for power in congress. Parties and leadership in congress and in the electorate. Effective number of parties (party committees) in congress. The democratic and republican parties have competed since the 1850s. Third parties are rarely successful over the long term. Often organized around extreme position on one issue (against political elites; against immigrants, etc) Plurality rule systems in single-member districts tend to have two parties. Example: three parties leftists supported by 25 pct centrists supported by 35 pct. Systems wherein whoever gets the most votes win and rightists supported by 40 pct. Rightists win and leftists/centrusts get nothing; next election, makes sense for them to band together (leftists would rather have a centrist than a rightists) Strategic politicians: forming an extremist party helps politicians on the other side of the spectrum. Within government, parties are (permanent) coalitions of individuals with shared interests/preferences and channel individual ambition/goals.
