Party+Eras+(4-6)

=Party Eras 4-6= By Kelly Reid (Editor), Andrew Carroll, and Jesse Kenney

**The Fourth Party System- Republican Era 2** **(1896-1932)**
This era was characterized by 2 parties, the Democrats and the Republicans. The Democrats' main candidate was William Jennings Bryan and Woodrow Wilson. Their main focuses were maintaining the current regions of the country, and were called "**nativists**" for looking to keep the countr y in its current traditions. Republicans dominated this era, except for a lone 8 years starting in 1912 when Woodrow Wilson won the election with Teddy Roosevelt's help. Democrats also petitioned for the formation of free silver rather than gold regarding the "money issue." They were more concerned with the country's "autonomy on races" than their Republican rivals were. Most of their demographic support came from the south and west, including small farmers, western miners, and urban workers.

The Republicans were characterized mainly by their big business views, taking their lead from big business growers like Roosevelt and Taft. They focused on issues like lowering taxes, higher **tariffs** on goods coming into the country, and supporting minimum government regulations throughout business and the economy, especially concerning railroads. They fiercely supported the **gold standard**, and did not agree with the democratic view to base the economy on silver instead. Their demographic support originated from people in the Northeast and the Mideast, including big business owners and metropolitan workers.

These parties evolved because of the split of Populist parties during the late 1800s. Huge social and economic changes brought during this time period called for change, and farmers created the party to better show their views and concerns. The Democrats took the reigns from the Populist party, by taking control of their call for the coinage of silver. Ultimately, this era led to the eventual takeover by the Republicans and continued until the 1950s.




 * Fifth Party Era- New Deal Coalition (1932-1968) **

The fifth party system known as the New Deal Coalition lasted from 1932 to 1968. It was a unique party era because it was when the Democratic Party dominated politics. This was known as a **permanent realignment**, a dramatic change in the political system. After the Great Depression, a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II, Americans were desperate for guidance and for change. The New Deal Coalition was supported by primarily union workers, upper middle class, intellectuals, African Americans, and women. The Democratic Party had overwhelming support from almost the entire nation.

Major Candidates during this time period included Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon B Johnson, and John F Kennedy. FDR created numerous programs in order to pull America out of the Great Depression. After the unemployment rate hit 25% FDR created various **alphabet agencies**, US federal government agencies designed to end the depression. Some of these included  United States Housing Authority, The Federal Loan Agency, Office of War Information, and Office of Censorship.

 The major issues during this time period were most importantly the economy, civil rights, and the increased size of the government. Kennedy was slow to advocate for civil rights where as Johnson was a strong supporter. Many people feared that the government was becoming too powerful. As a result the Supreme Court ended up ruling against many New Deal programs. However though there were many obstacles the Fifth Party Era was extremely successful in aiding and rebuilding America.




 * Sixth Party Era- Era of Divided Government (1968-Present) **

The Sixth Party Era known as the Era of Divided Government because of its increased **polarization** of the two major parties over the last 40 years. This era started in 1968, when the Johnson administration was in office. The GOP knew that it was important to overturn the last era of a strictly democratic controlled Washington. They wanted to offer the public an alternative to the policies that the Democratic party was stressing. They nominated Barry Goldwater as their presidential nominee in hopes of shifting the nation back to GOP policies by promising reduced levels of taxation and spending, less government regulation on the economy, and the elimination of federal social programs. This specific effort failed, but there next was successful when the backed Richard Nixon, who would become the next president.

The GOP in the 1960s and 1970s looked toward the South to rebuild their voter base. A major party switch in the South occurred switching from the Democratic Party to the GOP because of a few main reasons. The white southerners disdain for equal rights for blacks and other minorities pushed them to the Republican Party when the Democrats almost unanimously supported the **Voting Rights Act of 1965**. Also, another sect of voters realigned with the GOP for religious reasons. These **religious conservatives** were upset when the Democrats added to their party platform support for pro-choice legislation and even more switched over later on when they supported Gay Rights and Marriage. The GOP maintained control over the economic conservatives who believed in a hands-off policy when it came to business regulation. However, the Democratic Party maintained most of its support through unionized workers, and middle-class and upper-class intellectuals and professionals.

Many of the majors issues that were pertinent during this era and still continue to be important to the American people are abortion, environmental policy, equal rights in the workplace, gay marriage, the Iraq war and military spending, and healthcare reform. These issues have caused an extremely polarized electorate and political eraa. There is no room for compromise. The amount of party aligned voting skyrocketed over the past few decades. The GOP supports reducing government regulation in both business and health care, investing in our own oil supplies rather than investing in green energy, making abortions and gay marriage illegal throughout the nation, and increasing our military budget. The Democratic Party tends to lie on the polar opposite spectrum compared to the views of the GOP.

Some of the major candidates during this time for the GOP were Barry Goldwater, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and the Bushes. For the Democrats there was Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. Throughout this era, there has been a constant flip-flopping effect on who holds power in Washington. If a party didn’t control the White House administration, they would control the house and vice versa. This is an era defined by the polarization of the American public and that is the legacy that it will hold now and far into the future.



=Vocabulary=
 * **Nativists**
 * A sociopolitical policy, especially in the United States in the 19th century, favoring the interests of established inhabitants over those of immigrants.
 * **Tarriffs**
 * a tax imposed on imports or exports (trade tariff) in and out of a country
 * **Gold Standard**
 * a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed weight of gold
 * **Permanent Realignment**
 * =====When major constituencies shift their allegiance from one party to another, creating a long term alteration in the political environment.=====
 * **Alphabet Agencies**
 * the U.S. federal government agencies created as part of the New Deal of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The earliest agencies were created to combat the Great Depression in the United States and were established during Roosevelt's first 100 days in office in 1933
 * **Polarization**
 * is the process by which the public opinion divides and goes to the extremes
 * **Voting Rights Act of 1965**
 * is a landmark piece of national legislation in the United States that outlawed discriminatory voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread disenfranchisement ofAfrican Americans in the U.S.
 * **Religious Conservatives**
 * Christian right is a term used in the United States to describe right-wing Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies.

=Questions=
 * 1) **Who were some Major Candidates during the Fifth Party Era?**
 * 2) **Explain what an alphabet agency is and give an example of one.**
 * 3) **What was the "Money Issue" and which party supported which standard?**
 * 4) **What brought on the changes that led to the Fourth Party Era?**
 * 5) **What were the 3 main platform points of Barry Goldwater's GOP campaign in 1964?**
 * 6) **What were some of the main issues during the Sixth Party Era and which side aligned with which view?**

= Sources: =

http://www.examiner.com/article/fdr-s-new-deal-coalition-1932-1968 http://millercenter.org/president/fdroosevelt/essays/biography/8. http://www.shmoop.com/political-parties/the-fourth-party-system.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_Party_System In-Class packet http://mrswansonchs.com/CHS/AP_US_GOVERNMENT_RESOURCES_files/2.%20Birth%20and%20Evolution%20of%20Political%20Parties%20-%20Text%20Source.pdf