American Party System

[CDarwin]

I've always been a little bit peeved by complaints about the American "two-party tyranny." For one, people seem to forget how chaotic multi-party democracies, like Israel's or India's, can be. No one party ever wins an outright majority and so is forced to assemble impromptu coalitions which can take months and inevitably give disproportionate power to small fringe and local parties that can undo governments by withholding their few votes. Our two parties are essentially pre-packaged coalitions that can take power and govern much more reliably and with greater accountability. And secondly, no third party ever seemed really serious to me about putting forward a broad, nationally relevant agenda and taking the incremental steps necessary for real success, instead focusing on impossible but high profile Presidential campaigns. What if the Green Party put all the effort it put into running Ralph Nader for President in 2000 into running him somewhere for Congress? Wouldn't having a third party member in the House of Representatives be a big deal, and a worthy goal for a party trying to break onto the national stage?

 

Well, with that preface, I came across a particularly cogent passage in Richard Hofstadter's The Age of Reform today that I thought I would just quote in block:

 

But third-party leaders in the United States must look for success in terms different from those that apply to the major parties, for in those terms third parties always fail. No third party has ever won possession of the government or replaced one of the major parties. (Even the Republican Party came in to existence as a new major party, created out of sections of the old ones, not as a third party grown to major-party strength.) Third parties have often played an important role in our politics, but it is different in kind from the role of the governing parties. Major parties have lived more for patronage than for principles; their goal has been to bind together a sufficiently large coalition of diverse interests to get into power; and once in power, to arrange sufficiently satisfactory compromises of interests to remain there. Minor parties have been attached to some special idea or interest, and they have generally expressed their positions through firm and identifiable programs and principles. Their function has not been to win or govern, but to agitate, educate, generate new ideas, and supply the dynamic element in our political life. When a third party's demands become popular enough, they are appropriated by one or both of the major parties and the third party disappears. Third parties are like bees: once they have stung, they die.

Emphasis mine, because I like the quote.

 

That seemed to answer my dismissal of the third-ers. So, what do you think about Hofstadter's conclusions, or my opinions? Why do you think third parties so invariably fail to unseat national parties in the United States? I think commentary from posters who live in countries with a more prolific partisan scene might be particularly interesting.

Edited August 7, 2009 by CDarwin

[Skye]

Why do you think third parties so invariably fail to unseat national parties in the United States?

The absence of a proportional representation system is a major reason for the lack of success of minor parties in the US.

[DJBruce]

There are many reasons most third parties fail. The fact that they normally present a very narrow platform centered around one specific issue means the appeal to a very small percentage of the electorate. Also this specific agenda often is eventually adopted into a major party's platform, like the Green Party's environmentalism become party of the democratic party or the Free Soils ideals being absorbed into the Republican Party. Once a major party has stolen a third party's stance on an issue, most supporters of that policy will migrate to the major party as they feel the major party has a better chance of winning and thus implementing that policy. Another issue that plagues most third parties is the lack of appropriate funds and resources available to the major parties.

 

The American election system is also set up against third party candidates. Most election laws and procedures are written by Republican and Democrats and they normally write the laws to favor the major parties. For example it requires substantially less signatures for an "important" major party candidate to appear on the presidential ballot than a third party or an independent. The fact that the electoral college is winner take all, at least in most if not all states, also greatly hurts third parties. The fact that a third parties rarely achieves any electors helps perpetuate the idea that third parties are a waste of a vote.

 

My final two reasons why third parties generally fail comes down to the American electorate. A large portion of the American electorate is apathetic and is unwilling to research third parties and simply vote with what is familiar. The name recognition of the RNC and DNC is amazingly helpful. Also many Americans feel that a third party cannot win and thus believe a vote for a third party is a waste of their vote.

 

As for whether this is good or bad I would have to say that it is normally good. The two party system gives our government a remarkable amount of stability, and although it is true third parties can spur change our two party system allows for the change to occur prudently which is not bad in the least.

 

Here is a link where a Harvard Professor discuses the restrictions placed on third party candidates attempting to be placed on the ballot.

[CDarwin]

The point about the electoral system of the United States is a good one, I had forgotten to mention that. I would point out, however, that not all American elections use an exclusively first past the post system. I'm not aware of anything akin to an Australian-style preferential voting system (which I understand is particularly third-party friendly), but several states hold run-offs. Third party candidates haven't seen any electoral success in those in recent years, either (although they have on the state level in the past).

Edited August 8, 2009 by CDarwin