American Political Party System Research Paper
Final Exam Paper – American History 1 (HIS 121)
Debbie Fair
Evolution of the American Political Party Systems
July 2014
Professor P. Kucsan
America has seen the rise and fall of many political parties throughout its history, but the two that have managed to maintain power to this day are the Republican and the Democratic Parties. After the ratifying of the constitution in 1788, there were no official political parties and George Washington was elected unopposed. During the 1790s, two groups began to branch out due to disagreements between the members of Washington’s cabinet. During Washington’s farewell speech in 1796, he warned about the dangers of political parties. He stated, ”The alternate domination of one faction …show more content…
They now also received support from Catholics and immigrants. Their support of Manifest Destiny attracted prospectors and some businessmen. By the 1850s, the Democrats were nearly the only party in the South. Like the Federalists, the Whigs were more popular in urban cities and market towns, especially the wealthy. The party was mostly Northerners. As Democrats gradually began to adapt many Whig policies, such as industrialization and railroads, the Whig support began to lower as the Democrats gained more …show more content…
One of their main disagreements was due to their stances on expansion. The Democrats wished to expand fast as it would provide more farming land and potentially more profit, while the Whigs thought expanding was unnecessary. This also led to the disagreement between the parties due to the Mexican War. Democrats saw the war as a necessary move to gain more land westward. The Whigs supported tariffs that favored businesses and manufacturing while hurting the common people that would be forced to pay more for their needs, which the Democrats strongly opposed. Democrats were also worried about the Whig Party’s stance on government spending, as the government was spending more than ever on improvements like railroads. Even though the parties were divided on most issues, the issue of slavery split each party up
Debbie Fair
Evolution of the American Political Party Systems
July 2014
Professor P. Kucsan
America has seen the rise and fall of many political parties throughout its history, but the two that have managed to maintain power to this day are the Republican and the Democratic Parties. After the ratifying of the constitution in 1788, there were no official political parties and George Washington was elected unopposed. During the 1790s, two groups began to branch out due to disagreements between the members of Washington’s cabinet. During Washington’s farewell speech in 1796, he warned about the dangers of political parties. He stated, ”The alternate domination of one faction …show more content…
They now also received support from Catholics and immigrants. Their support of Manifest Destiny attracted prospectors and some businessmen. By the 1850s, the Democrats were nearly the only party in the South. Like the Federalists, the Whigs were more popular in urban cities and market towns, especially the wealthy. The party was mostly Northerners. As Democrats gradually began to adapt many Whig policies, such as industrialization and railroads, the Whig support began to lower as the Democrats gained more …show more content…
One of their main disagreements was due to their stances on expansion. The Democrats wished to expand fast as it would provide more farming land and potentially more profit, while the Whigs thought expanding was unnecessary. This also led to the disagreement between the parties due to the Mexican War. Democrats saw the war as a necessary move to gain more land westward. The Whigs supported tariffs that favored businesses and manufacturing while hurting the common people that would be forced to pay more for their needs, which the Democrats strongly opposed. Democrats were also worried about the Whig Party’s stance on government spending, as the government was spending more than ever on improvements like railroads. Even though the parties were divided on most issues, the issue of slavery split each party up