This book is an ideal reference for students and researchers who want to develop a deeper understanding of the current challenges faced by citizens of republican government in the United States.

About the Editor
Contributors
Acknowledgments
Introduction - Marjorie Randon Hershey and Edward M. Burmila
Who is Included in a "Party"?
Different Definitions of "Party"
Central Themes in the Study of Political Parties
Plan of the Guide
Part I. What Are Parties For?
1. Parties and the Respone to Change: The Representation and Mobilization of Divisions in a Nation - Mark D. Brewer and Jeffrey M. Stonecash
The Nature of Party Coalitional Change
Parties, Conflict, and the Challenge of Social Change
Partisan Responses to Change
Conclusion
2. Political Parties: Recruiting Leaders and Structuring Elections - Jamie L. Carson
Relationships Between Political Parties and Their Candidates
Challenges to the Parties′ Role Posed by Progressive Era Reforms
Unintended Consequences of Candidate-Selection Reforms
Decline and Resurgence of Parties′ Roles in Nominating Candidates and Structuring Elections
How the Parties Regained an Important Role in Campaigns
Conclusion
3. Parties as Coordinators: Can Parties Unite What the Constitution Divides? - Frances E. Lee
Parties as Centralizers: Theory and Practice
Building Majorities: Procedural and Substantive
Enacting Policies
Do Parties Promote Policy Coherence?
Bridging the Separation of Powers?
Promoting Accountability
The Parties and the Constitution
4. What the Parties Stand For - Hans Noel
Understanding Changes in Party Philosophies
The First Party System (1789-1824): The Great Principle
The Second Party System (1828-1854): Reemergent Conflict
The Third Party System (1854-1892): The Irresistible Force of Slavery
The Fourth Party System (1896-1932): The Progressive Era
The Fifth Party System (1932-) and Beyond: Liberalism Versus Conservatism
Party Ideologies in the Twenty-First Century
5. Parties in the American Political Environment: Shaped, Adaptive, and Shapers - Paul A. Beck
The Constitutional Framework and Political Parties
The Uniqueness of the American Parties
Environmental Change and Shifting Powers Within Parties
The Lens Reversed: Parties Shaping Their Environments
Emerging Environmental Challenges to the Parties
Conclusion
Part II. Historical Development of the Parties
6. The Origins and Development of U.S. Political Parties, 1790-1861
Clashing Views About Government
The Parties’ Coalitions
The Parties Fade
A Populist Party System
The Rise of Van Buren
Party Organizations
The Whigs and the Democrats
Sectional Tension
New Parties Arise
Conclusion
7. Political Parties in the Age of Industrialization: From Their Golden Age Through the Progressive Era - Jeffrey D. Grynaviski
The Golden Age of Parties
Political Party Organization
Voter Behavior
The Progressive Era
Conclusion
8. Constructing a New Majority: The Depression, the New Deal, and the Democrats - Kristi Andersen
Party Politics in the 1920s
A Changing Electorate
The Great Depression and Party Politics
The Mechanics of Political Change: Mobilization and Conversion
The Democrats Organize a Coalition
Party System Consolidation
Conclusion
9. Partisanship, Sectionalism, and Race: Civil Rights and Party Development From the 1950s Through the 1970s - Jeffery A. Jenkins
Background to the Era
The Eisenhower Years
The Kennedy/Johnson Years
The Nixon/Ford Years
The Carter Years and Beyond
Conclusion
10. Parties Revised and Revived: Democrats and Republicans in the Age of Reagan, 1980 to 2000 - David Karol
Parties in the Electorate: The End of Democratic Dominance
Changing Party Coalitions
The Parties and the Presidency
The Parties in Congress
The Democratic Response to Reagan
Third-Party Developments in the 1980s and 1990s
Conclusion: Parties Revised and Revived
11. Polarization and Volatility: The State of the Party System in the Twenty-First Century - Casey B.K. Dominguez
Political Events in the First Decade of the Twenty-First Century
The Party as Organization
Party in the Electorate
Party in Government
Understanding Outcomes
Prospects for Future Change
Conclusion
Part III. Party Organizations
12. The Nature of Party Organizations - Daniel DiSalvo
Party Structures
Party Development
Party Organizations in Congress
Conclusion
13. From Machines to Service Centers: The Evolution of State and Local Political Parties - Vladimir Kogan
The Anatomy of the Party
Machine Politics in the City
Era of Political Reform
Adaptation and Resurgence: Party Activities in the Modern Era
Survival in the Twenty-First Century: Emerging Challenges
14. The Transformation of the National Party Committees - Daniel J. Galvin
The Timing and Process of Party Change
The Republican National Committee’s Transformation Into a Service Institution
The Democratic National Committee’s Delayed Transformation Into a Service Institution
Conclusion
15. The Impact of Reform on National Party Financing and Campaigning - Paul S. Herrnson
The Institutional Setting
Party Finance During the Golden Age
Party Finance and the Federal Election Campaign Act
Party Finance and the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
Party Finance in the Post-BCRA Era
Political Parties as Enduring Multilayered Coalitions
16. Party Activists - Geoffrey C. Layman
Perspectives on Parties and Party Activists
Amateurs and Professionals: The Political Incentives and Norms of Party Activists
Party Activists and Partisan Change
Activists and Party Polarization
Conclusion
17. Vote-Seeking Third Parties in the Twentieth Century - Ronald B. Rapoport and Justin de Benedictis-Kessner
Categorizations of Third Parties
Factional Parties
Regional Versus National Parties
Characteristics of Candidates and Campaigns
Third Parties and the Institutional Environment
The Institutional Context
Opportunities for Success: The Political Environment
Comparing the Campaigns
The Dynamic of Third Parties
Part IV. Parties in the Electorate
18. The Nature of Partisan Identification - Marc J. Hetherington
What Is Partisanship?
The Distribution of Partisanship
Where Party Identification Comes From
Beyond Socialization and Groups
The Effects of Party Identification
Conclusion
19. Party Identification and Issue Attitudes - Logan Dancey
The Partisan Divide
How Voters Align Party and Issues Positions
The Normative Implications
Conclusions and Remaining Questions
20. Independents and American Elections - Russell J. Dalton
The Evidence of Weakening Party Ties
The Consequences of Dealignment
Independents and Electoral Politics
21. Primary Elections and Caucuses - Barbara Norrander
Direct Primaries
The Presidential Nomination Process
Concerns About Primary Elections
22. Partisanship in General Elections - Helmut Norpoth
Party Identification and the Vote
Rivals of Party Identification
Issue Opinions in General Elections
Candidate Perceptions in General Elections
The Impact of Issues and Candidates
Cycles and Equilibrium in General Elections
Conclusion
23. Differing Views on Polarization of the Electorate - Thomas M. Carsey
Is the Electorate Polarized Now?
Causes of Party Polarization in the Electorate
The Consequences of Party Polarization in the Electorate
Conclusion
Part V. Parties in Government
24. Ebbs and Flows in the Power of Congressional Party Leaders Since 1910 - Bruce I. Oppenheimer
Moving in Opposite Directions, 1910–1915
Republican Dominance Followed by Democratic Control, 1919–1937
The Conservative Coalition and the Independent Power of Committee Chairs, 1937-1970
The Return of Stronger Parties, 1970 to the Present 317
Conclusion
25. Differences in Party Leadership and Control Among the U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and State Legislatures - Jennifer Hayes Clark and Gerald C. Wright
Legislative Leadership: Structure and Organization
Where’s the Party? Assessing Contemporary Debates of Party Power
Leadership, Gatekeeping Rights, and Majority Roll Rates
Analyses and Results
Conclusion
26. What Influence Do the Parties Have in the Presidency and the Bureaucracy? - Jesse H. Rhodes
Parties, the Presidency, and the Constitution
The Rise of Political Parties and the Transformation of the Presidency
The Progressive Movement and Challenges to the Nineteenth-Century Party System
The Modern Presidency and the Transformation of the American Party System
From the High Tide of the Modern Presidency to the Reemergence of Party Politics
Conclusion
27. Partisan Control of Government and Public Policy - David R. Jones
Party Differentiation in Policy Preferences
Presidential Relations With Copartisans
Policy Outcomes Under Divided Versus Unified Government
Policy Outcomes Under Democratic Versus Republican Control
Changes in Party Control
Conclusion
28. Political Parties and the Changing Media Environment - Marjorie Randon Hershey and Jessica Gall Myrick
Relationships Between the Parties and the Media
How the Party-Media Relationship Has Changed
How Parties Use the Digital Media
How the Media Constrain the Parties’ Goals
Conclusion
Part VI. Parties in Their Environment
29. Political Parties and Interest Groups: Parties as Networks - Richard M. Skinner
Groups and the Party Networks
Members of the Party Networks
Interest Groups and Political Parties: Personnel and Resources
Groups as Policy Demanders
Party-Group Tensions
Conclusion
30. The Standard of Responsible Parties - John J. Coleman
The Debate Over Responsible and Functional Parties
Challenges Facing Responsible Parties in the United States
Episodes of Responsible Party Government
The Current Era and Party Responsibility
Polarization and the Responsible Party Ideal
Conclusion
31. Political Parties and Economic Inequality - Lawrence R. Jacobs
Political Parties and Economic Structure
Information and Power
So What?
Disciplined Parties and Democracy
Conclusion - Marjorie Randon Hershey
Selecting Leaders
Policy Coordination Within Government
Holding Leaders Accountable
What Happens Next?
Summing Up
Index