The Democratic and Republican parties of the United States are the main players in the political arena. All American presidents, starting in 1853, belonged to a particular bloc. Democratic is one of the oldest in the world and the oldest active party in the USA.
A Brief History of the Democratic Party
The formation of a bipartisan system in the United States of America dates back to 1792, when the first American political party, the Federalist Party, was formed. It’s worth starting with almost the most important date for the United States - September 16, 1787, when the Constitution of the young American state was adopted at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
There was not a word in the text of the document about political unions, which at that time simply did not exist in the country. Moreover, the founding fathers of the state were opposed to the idea of division into parties. James Madison and Alexander Hamilton wrote about the dangers of domestic political parties. George Washington did not belong to any of the parties, neither at the time of the election, nor during the presidential term. Fearing conflict and stagnation, he believed that the creation of political blocs in governments should not be encouraged.
Nevertheless, the need to win the support of voters soon led to the formation of the first political parties. The beginning of the American bipartisan system, which is remarkable, was laid precisely by critics of this approach. The constitution, by the way, to this day does not specifically stipulate the existence of political parties.
United States Democratic Party
Democrats in the United States began their separate story from the Democratic Republican Party, founded by Thomas Jefferson, Aaron Barr, George Clinton and James Madison in 1791. The split, which resulted in the formation of the Democratic and National Republican parties (the latter soon became known as the Whigs), occurred in 1828. The official founding date of the US Democratic Party is January 8, 1828 (the Republican Party was organized on March 20, 1854).
Political dominance and the fall
Over the years the bloc has existed, there have been ups and downs in the history of the US Democratic Party. The first significant era is 1828-1860. For 24 years since its founding, the Democratic Party has been ruling. Its ranks included presidents Andrew Jackson and Marine Van Buren (1829-1841), James Polk (1845-1849), Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan (1853-1861). In a serious conflict between the North and the South, including on slavery, the Democrats split.
This contributed to the fact that the position of the Republicans strengthened in the political arena, and Abraham Lincoln took over as president as a result of the 1860 election. With the outbreak of the Civil War, an active confrontation of republicans began, the leader of which A. Lincoln became a symbol of democrats and the struggle against slavery not only in America but also in the world.
The next particularly successful period of the US Democratic Political Party began in 1912. This was due to such well-known politicians as W. Wilson and F. Roosevelt. The first was not afraid to drag the country into a world war, and the second made a significant contribution to overcoming the consequences of the Great Depression and the victory of the Allies in the largest armed conflict in the history of mankind.
The first successful years of the Democratic Party
During the period of dominance in the US political arena in 1828-1860, the party advocated lowering customs tariffs on exports, which were interested in immigrants importing their property into the territory of the young state, as well as capital. The ideology of the US Democratic Party provided for the preservation of slavery, reflecting the interests of the southern states. The circle of supporters of the political bloc included residents of the South, slave owners, plantationists, Catholics, immigrants.
In 1818, Andrew Jackson became president. He introduced universal suffrage for white male citizens, which in those years was a very bold decision, and carried out a reform of the electoral system. Jackson was a supporter of the eviction of the Native American people - the Indians, enjoyed the support of the inhabitants of the South, who claimed the liberated land.
Jackson's successor was Martin Van Buren, elected in 1836. He first decided to put an end to the financial difficulties in the country that arose during the reign of his predecessor. He put forward a proposal to separate the state’s financial resources from banks, to arrange the state treasury in Washington and its departments in the provinces. The project was rejected, and the president’s popularity declined.
The next president of the United States from the Democratic Party is James Polk (1045-1849). His presidency was marked by territorial acquisitions, making America a major Pacific power. Many modern scholars and historians include the Regiment among the most distinguished presidents of the United States.
The decline of the Democratic Party in 1896-1932
Amid the confrontation between the North and the South, a conflict broke out within the party. Democrats in the South sought to spread slavery in the northern states, and advocated that the new states separately solve the issue of slavery on their territory. There were those who defended the interests of the industrialists of the North and were convinced of the need for a central government. They were supported by aristocratic circles.
After the end of the Civil War in the United States, the Democrats still held their positions in the South, but since the Republicans were in power, the Democratic Party went into opposition. Representatives of this block were oriented toward landowners, opposed the introduction of protectionist tariffs and the gold standard.
In the period of split and subsequent decline, the only head of the US Democratic Party, who took up the post of president during a difficult period, was Grover Cleveland. He occupied the chair of the president in 1893-1897. Democrat advocated for public service reform, free trade, criticized expansionism in the Caribbean. With this program, the Democrats were able to attract some Republicans into their ranks, who left the bloc and supported the president.
Revival under W. Wilson, F. Roosevelt
For a long time, Democrats were in smaller numbers in the Senate, but in 1912, the leader of the US Democratic Party, Woodrow Wilson, became the head of state. He began the fight against the monopolies, created the Federal Trade Commission, adopted a law on the reserve system, banned the use of child labor, reduced taxes and reduced the working day for railway workers, and set it for eight hours. The 28th president of the United States became one of the founders of the League of Nations, initiated the Fourteen Point settlement program after the war.
In the twenties of the nineteenth century, the party was torn by contradictions related to ethnocultural issues, the recognition of the Ku Klus Klan and immigration restrictions. During the Great Depression, the party revived: F. Roosevelt to this day remains the only president to be elected for four terms. The goals of his political program were to alleviate the situation of bankrupt and unemployed people, restore agriculture and business, increase the number of jobs, increase social benefits, and so on.
After him, the presidency was taken by another representative of the US Democratic Party - Harry Truman. He paid special attention to the post-war world order and foreign policy. During his reign, there was a confrontation of relations with the Soviet Union, at the same time there was a decision to create a NATO North Atlantic Alliance for military cooperation.
In 1960, the United States Democratic candidate, John F. Kennedy, won the election. He initiated a tax cut and a change in civil rights law. In the foreign policy sphere, however, several failures awaited him. Under Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969), discrimination against African Americans and women, racial segregation was prohibited.
After the Watergate scandal, American citizens elected President Jimmy Carter (1977-1981), whose rule was characterized by a difficult relationship with Congress. After, with the election of Ronald Reagan, a Republican, the US Democratic Party lost control of the Senate and was again divided. In 1992, Bill Clinton (1993-2001) took over the presidency, reelected for a second term for success in domestic politics.
In the 2008 presidential election, Barack Obama was elected, and the Democrats won a majority in both the Senate and House of Representatives. In June 2016, Hillary Clinton became the candidate from the Democratic Party, who managed to visit the first lady, actively collaborated with Barack Obama, worked for four years as Secretary of State. She could not win the victory.
Symbols of the American Democratic Party
The unofficial symbol of the US Democratic Party is the donkey. Everything started from the fact that in 1828 the opponents of Andrew Jackson portrayed him in caricatures as a donkey, stupid and stubborn. But the party turned this comparison to its advantage. The animal symbol of the US Democratic Party is persistent, industrious and modest. The donkey was then placed on its materials, focusing on its positive qualities.
In 1870, the famous cartoonist Thomas Nast portrayed the Republicans using the image of an elephant. Over time, the Democratic and Republican parties of the United States began to be associated with these animals. It was established in the mass consciousness that democrats are donkeys (by the way, they see nothing offensive in this), and republicans are elephants.
The symbol of the US Democratic Party was adopted as a sign of obstinacy in overcoming difficulties. The donkey became an unofficial symbol after publishing a caricature in Harper's Weekly. There was depicted an elephant attacked by aggressive donkeys. The symbol of the US Democratic Party is a donkey, and now it is used along with the unofficial color of the political bloc - blue.
Organizational structure of a political party
The US Democratic Party does not have permanent programs, party tickets, membership. In 1974, the Democrats adopted the charter. Formally, now, all voters who voted for its candidates in the last elections are counted among the party’s members. The stability of the Democratic Party is ensured by a permanent party apparatus.
The lowest party cell is the committee of the polling station, which is appointed by the parent body. Further, the structure includes committees of the districts of megacities, counties, cities, and states. The highest bodies are national congresses, which are held once every four years. At congresses, committees are elected that function the rest of the time.
Democratic Presidents in US History
From the beginning of the confrontation between North and South and until 1912, the US Republican Party remained the ruling party, the only Democrat politician who at that time managed to take the presidency was Grover Cleveland. In the twentieth century, the party revived and gave America the distinguished presidents: Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy. Also, the democrats were Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama.
The ideology and basic principles of the party
At its foundation, the US Democratic Party adhered to the principles of agrarianism and Jacksonian democracy. Agrarianism regards rural society as one that will convey urban. Jacksonian democracy is built on the expansion of suffrage, the belief that white Americans have streamlined the fate of the American West, limiting the powers of the federal government, and non-interference in the economy.
From the 1890s onwards, liberal and progressive tendencies in the ideology of the party began to intensify. Democrats have historically represented workers, farmers, ethnic and religious minorities, and trade unions. In foreign policy, the dominant principle was internationalism.
Sociologists and researchers argue that the Democratic Party in ideology shifted from the left to the center in the 40-50s of the XX century, and then, in the 70s and 80s, moved further to the right center. Republicans, on the other hand, shifted first from the center-right sense to the center, and then again to the right.
