Why The United States Has Only Two Major Political Parties

In recent discussion of Democrats and Republican parties, a controversial issue has been whether or not the U.S. should expand their options from more than a two party system. On the one hand, some argue that there should be more choices other than between the two Democrat Party and Republican Party. From this perspective, voters have more of a variety when they vote. On the other hand, some argue that the U.S. should remain as a two party system. In the words of Gary Johnson, one of this view’s main proponents, “The Republicans and Democrats have spent decades trading power back and forth between themselves, and in doing so, have managed to install a two-party duopoly that completely controls America’s political process.” According to this view, Democrats and Republicans are dictating other parties opportunities to get elected. In sum, then, the issue is whether there should be other options rather than a choice between the Democrat and the Republican Party. I agree with Gary Johnson’s view that the Democrat and Republican Parties are controlling America’s

A two-party system is a form of party system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections. As a result, all, or nearly all, elected offices end up being held by candidates chosen by one of the two major parties. Under a two-party system, one of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually referred to as the majority party while the other is the minority party. The United States of America is considered a two-party system. The chances for third party candidates winning election to any office are remote, although it's possible for groups within the larger parties, or in opposition to one or both of them, to have an influence

Explain historical evolution of the American two-party system and the functions parties perform in the American political system.

Another reason for the insignificance of third parties and the reason for the two party system is the first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system. Unfortunately for third parties, the two main parties always tend to come out with the majority even if they don’t win the popular vote. An example of the unfairness of this voting system is in 2008 the independent party of America managed to get 1 in every 5 votes but still didn’t manage to gain seats. Having said that, FPTP in theory allows for a strong stable government with a hefty majority providing they dominate congress and the legislature.

In 1789, the U.S. did not have a two-party system. The two-party system is rooted in the beginnings of the nation itself. The Framers of the Constitution were opposed to political parties. The ratification of the Constitution saw the birth of America's first two parties: the federalists, led by Alexander Hamilton, and the Anti-Federalists, who followed Thomas Jefferson. The nation had only had George Washington, who was President without a party at that time. During George Washington’s two terms, a conflict developed between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who were both Federalists men. Jefferson challenged Adams under the umbrella of the Democratic - Republican Party. In addition, the Democratic - Republican Party was the first real party that contained the formal beginnings of the present day two-party system. The word Democratic infers to “will of the people”, the word Republican infers to “rule of law” which is defense from possible oppression of the majority. In short, the American party system began as a two-party system. In this essay I will be discussing the why America needs a two-party system, why a multi-system may work for the nation and the conflicts, and how does this political system contributes to the nation and why a two-system is worth the struggle.

There are three types of political system in the world. They are the one party, two parties and multi-party. America has a two party system. The two party systems are still in existence because of historical circumstance, stability; the winner takes all principle and preservation of the two-monopoly system and due to the informal institutional supports. A two party system is a system that involves two major political parties and these two parties including a majority and a minority party that dominate within a government.

John Adams, one of the founding fathers, wrote that “There is nothing which I dread so much as a division of the republic into two great parties, each arranged under its leader, and concerting measures in opposition to each other. This, in my humble apprehension, is to be dreaded as the greatest political evil under our Constitution” (“Quote by John Adams”). The Two-Party system has been around since the start of America. The Two-Party system is a system that has two parties that the government, or America in this case, has that lead the government or America. At the current time, the two parties are the Republican and Democrat parties. It was created with the idea that everyone can be represented within either of the parties. Even though it does create some representation of the people, the two-party system does not create an equal policy in society because it does not allow people to get far if they are not within either of the two parties, does not allow the idea of having more than two parties, and because it doesn't represent everyone.

The political system was set up so that many leaders, such as the president and members of the House of Representatives, would be elected by the popular vote. Duverger’s Law tells us that in a nation with plurality-rule elections, the country will naturally be divided into two parties. Because voters normally tend to support candidates in the middle ground, more extreme third-party candidates do not usually win the elections because they do not appeal to enough voters. The effect of a third-party candidate most likely splits the vote on one political side and allows the candidate on the opposite end to win the most votes. For this reason, voting for an unlikely third-party candidate is sometimes called, “throwing away your vote.” (Pulsipher, Jenny) ?? Lincoln stated concerning partisanship, “A free people in times of peace and quiet—when pressed by no common danger—naturally divide into parties. At such times, the man who is of neither party, is not—cannot be, of any consequence.” (Hatzenbuehler 42) The United States gradually has divided into a two-party system. This adjustment is caused at least in part by the popular voting structure provided in the Constitution and explained by Duverger’s

Third parties fail to achieve electoral victories and representation in modern American politics have been because of the structure of the types of the elections, the ballot rules, and the debate rules. Even if the third parties have equal standards, views, resources, etc., lacking in popularity and significance within the government may increase the chance of not being able to represent in politics. “In order to appreciate the reasons for the Electoral College, it is essential to understand its historical context and the problem that the Founding Fathers were trying to solve.” (Kimberling) In the nation, the political parties brought up concerns and questioning of how electing a president with no such political parties would be possible

The two-party system is said to promote governmental stability because a single party can win a majority of political offices and, with less bickering between differing and partisan legislators, govern more efficiently. In a multiparty country, on the other hand, the formation of a government depends on the maintenance of a coalition of parties with enough total strength to form a political majority. The weakness of the ties that bind the coalition may threaten the continuance of a cabinet in power. The stability shown by the government of the United States has not been entirely due to its party system, it has been argued, but has been promoted also by the fixed tenure and strong constitutional position of the president, as well as checks and balances built into the constitution to prevent one branch of federal government from becoming too powerful.

Currently in the United States the system in which the government works has allowed there to be a two-party dominance with the Democrat party and the Republican party. Both parties had a large following in previous years. In the book, Governing States and Localities by Kevin B. Smith and Alan Greenblatt they introduce reasons like the elimination of party machines and the mobility of the American people has lead for one party dominance in most states to decline. For example, before party machines were very much involved in controlling minority communities in voting for their people however this did not last long where eventually there was a reform in the system that stopped these party machines from growing. Additionally, we have seen that

The parties formed after the Constitution was adopted as the need to systematically search for and encourage popular support became apparent. The structure of a party allows a group of like-minded politicians to mold popular support in the favor of the candidate of their choice where alone they could only accomplish the creation of multiple less organized and therefore less politically potent factions. The nature of the political system already in place gave no value to coming in second or third in elections at any level of government, leading to the natural growth of two strong parties who battle for supremacy at every election (July 22). The winner takes all, and the opposition spends their time getting ready to try again as they wait for their next chance. Once the two parties, Democrat and Republican, were firmly settled in to the system they affected legislation to give themselves automatic ballot access and state funding, making election that much harder for other parties and thereby ensuring that it remained a two party system (July 22).

American history is filled with ups and downs. Starting out with only 13 colonies, America forcibly removed themselves from the one of the strongest empires in the world. Battling against political reform, the subtraction of resources from the motherland, the debt accrued by colonists, and the bank wars, America struggles to create a self-sustaining country.

A few of the reasons minor (third) parties have not been more successful in the United States are the ballot rules, debate rules, and the election structure. The candidates for major elections must meet state determined criteria to be included on election ballots. These often require candidates to collect a large number of signatures or pay large fees to be listed. In regards to debate rules, since the 1960s when televised presidential debates began, only a couple of times have third party candidates been able to participate. Limiting their ability to gain a following among the electorate by publicizing their views. Lastly, American elections are structured as “winner-take-all” votes. Which means regardless of the margin of victory, the candidate

Competition that otherwise would occur between major parties occurs in majority party. Voters don't participate as much. (Magleby 66)