Concept of the Two Party System
2-Party System Essay
As we know, a two-party system is one in which two political parties have a clear electoral advantage. Other political parties may exist, but in two-party systems the vast majority of elected office positions are held by members of only those two parties. Multi-party systems also exist throughout the world; in those systems, coalition governments are quite common, while in two-party systems they are very rare. Single-party systems also exist, but these systems tend not to be democratic in a substantive sense, as elections exist only to re-elect the ruling party. China is perhaps the most prominent example of a single-party system. The United States is a highly visible example of a politically stable country with a two-party system. Proponents of the system argue that it is more stable and more nourishing of democracy than the alternatives. Opponents argue that the entrenched interests of the Democratic and Republican parties do not allow for new ideas to gain traction. While it may be true that the two-party system in the United States creates stable political conditions, the evidence overwhelmingly favors the argument against such a system. When the United States was still an infant, George Washington, who was not affiliated with any political party, warned his countrymen against amassing too many political parties. He feared that the electoral fractures wouldn’t be sustained well by a nation that had just begun to unite. In the years following Washington’s inaugural presidency, a two-party system was initiated with John Adams’ Federalists opposing Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic-Republicans. The Whigs came next, followed by the now-familiar Democrats and Republicans, but there were never more than two dominant parties in this country at any one time. Our current configuration of Democrats and Republicans has been in place since the 1860s. Chief among the most commonly cited arguments for the two party system is
As we know, a two-party system is one in which two political parties have a clear electoral advantage. Other political parties may exist, but in two-party systems the vast majority of elected office positions are held by members of only those two parties. Multi-party systems also exist throughout the world; in those systems, coalition governments are quite common, while in two-party systems they are very rare. Single-party systems also exist, but these systems tend not to be democratic in a substantive sense, as elections exist only to re-elect the ruling party. China is perhaps the most prominent example of a single-party system. The United States is a highly visible example of a politically stable country with a two-party system. Proponents of the system argue that it is more stable and more nourishing of democracy than the alternatives. Opponents argue that the entrenched interests of the Democratic and Republican parties do not allow for new ideas to gain traction. While it may be true that the two-party system in the United States creates stable political conditions, the evidence overwhelmingly favors the argument against such a system. When the United States was still an infant, George Washington, who was not affiliated with any political party, warned his countrymen against amassing too many political parties. He feared that the electoral fractures wouldn’t be sustained well by a nation that had just begun to unite. In the years following Washington’s inaugural presidency, a two-party system was initiated with John Adams’ Federalists opposing Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic-Republicans. The Whigs came next, followed by the now-familiar Democrats and Republicans, but there were never more than two dominant parties in this country at any one time. Our current configuration of Democrats and Republicans has been in place since the 1860s. Chief among the most commonly cited arguments for the two party system is
Cited: Alesina, Alberto. (1988). Credibility and Policy Convergence in a Two-Party System With Rational Voters Arjmand, Marzieh. (2010). Two-Party System in the United States. Available at: http://ezinearticles.com/?Two-Party-System-in-the-United-States&id=3498174 Dalton, Russell J. (2008). The Quantity and Quality of Party Systems. Comparative Political Studies, 41 (7): 899-920 Dannheisser, Ralph. (2008). No Major Shakeup Likely in U.S. Two-Party Political System: Political Analysts Predict Parties Will Adapt to Address New Challenges