A 18 Political Parties in the usa

The election campaign is a time-honored American tradition. Major national, state and even local elections are elaborate, with multi-million dollar advertising budgets, televised debates, rallies, political conventions, and campaign posters. Any American 18 years and over can vote in an election.

Two-Party System. The United States has had two major political parties since the 1860's: the Republicans and the Democrats. The Republicans are referred to sometimes as the G.O.P. (Grand Old Party); their symbol is an elephant. The Democrats' symbol is a donkey. The ideological differences between these two political parties are often not apparent to outsiders. Very loosely speaking, the Republicans support big business and lower taxes while the Democrats call for government spending on social programs.

Left and Right. There are also ideological differences between “conservatives” and “liberals” (the meaning of the word “liberal” in the United States is unique to this country). Conservatives, on the “right,” call for law and order, laws against abortion, and prayer in the public schools, while liberals, on the “left,” call for greater government spending on social welfare programs, the prohibition of prayer in public schools, and freer access to birth control and abortion services.

The Libertarian Party has arisen in recent years to challenge both major groups, questioning the wisdom of the Republicans and Conservatives in trying to legislate morality, and of the Democrats and Liberals in trying to legislate public happiness. Libertarians believe in minimal government, which, of course, means minimal taxation.

The Tea Party movement, named after the famous 1773 protest by colonial Americans against the British tax on tea (called the “Boston Tea Party”), has arisen in recent years as an anti-tax, conservative popular movement. Tea Party adherents have been extremely vocal about reducing the national debt and the federal budget deficit. Loosely organized and not a political party, the movement has nevertheless been able to influence the political scene. Most Tea Party people identify with the Republicans, as opposed to most Libertarian Party members, who disdain both major political parties on an equal basis.

The Green Party of the United States (GPUS) is a political force dedicated to environmentalism, participatory democracy, sustainability, and diversity in American life. The party has had some success in winning elections, mostly on a state and local level. Noted consumerist Ralph Nader ran for president on the Green Party ticket in 1996 and 2000.

A19 Elections in the usa

The United States has a federal government, with elected officials at the federal (national), state and local levels. On a national level, the head of state, the President, is elected indirectly by the people, through an Electoral College. In modern times, the electors virtually always vote with the popular vote of their state. All members of the federal legislature, the Congress, are directly elected. There are many elected offices at the state level, each state having at least an elective governor and legislature. There are also elected offices at the local level, in counties and cities. It is estimated that across the whole country, over one million offices are filled in every electoral cycle.

Both federal and state laws regulate elections. The United States Constitution defines (to a basic extent) how federal elections are held, in Article One and Article Two and various amendments. State law regulates most aspects of electoral law, including primaries, the eligibility of voters (beyond the basic constitutional definition), the running of each state's electoral college, and the running of state and local elections. The financing of elections has always been controversial, because private sources of finance make up substantial amounts of campaign contributions, especially in federal elections. Voluntary public funding for candidates willing to accept spending limits was introduced in 1974 for presidential primaries and elections. The Federal Elections Commission, created in 1975 by an amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act has the responsibility to disclose campaign finance information, to enforce the provisions of the law such as the limits and prohibitions on contributions, and to oversee the public funding of U.S. presidential elections. The federal government has also been involved in attempts to increase voter turnout, by measures such as the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.

The method of voting is first-past-the-post where the highest polling candidate is elected. In the case of the Presidential electoral college the highest polling party elects 100% of the number of positions allocated to that state. There is no legislative requirement that the successful candidate or party must obtain a majority (50% or more) of the vote. The number of seats allocated are not proportional to the overall vote. Further there is no requirement or threshold in the number or percentage of voter turnout which is often below 50% of the eligible voters.