party politics — Bunk History

How John Lewis Put a Legacy of Heroism to Use

As the civil-rights era receded, his personal heroism loomed larger. But movement politics didn’t easily translate into party politics.

by Kelefa Sanneh via The New Yorker on October 7, 2024

1880 chart of American political history

Historians and the Strange, Fluid World of 19th-Century Politics

Why our understanding of the era has been hindered by the party system model.

by Rachel Shelden, Erik B. Alexander via Process: A Blog for American History on May 7, 2024

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake holds a news conference as she tours the U.S.-Mexico border on Nov. 4 in Sierra Vista, Ariz.

Cochise County Didn’t Used To Be the Land Of Far Right Stunts

How the rural Arizona border county embodies the political shift in much of America.

by Katherine Benton-Cohen via Made By History on December 2, 2022

A Century of Reforms Made Iowa and New Hampshire Presidential Kingmakers

But did they backfire?

by Bruce J. Schulman via Made By History on February 3, 2020

Are the Parties Dying?

A conversation on party politics and the durability of our current political system.

by Christopher Caldwell, Michael Kazin, Frances Lee, David Karol via Democracy Journal on March 19, 2018

Obama and Trump in the Oval Office.

Two Cheers for Polarization

We may not like it, but when it comes to U.S. politics, polarization may very well be part of the solution.

by Sam Rosenfeld via Boston Review on October 25, 2017

How the 19th-Century Know Nothing Party Shaped American Politics

From xenophobia to conspiracy theories, the Know Nothing party launched a nativist movement whose effects are still felt today.

by Lorraine Boissoneault via Smithsonian on January 26, 2017

Book cover of "Let the Glory Out: My South and its Politics" by Al Gore

The Chaotic Politics of the South

For three quarters of a century the South was the geographic base of Democratic Presidential hopes.

by C. Vann Woodward via New York Review of Books on December 14, 1972

Portrait of Martin Van Buren.

The Father of the Party System

Because Martin Van Buren was an unsuccessful president, his more significant contributions to the nation’s political life have also been obscured.

by James M. Bradley via OUPblog on October 18, 2024

Barack Obama holds up a baby on the campaign trail

Charm Offensive: Why Politicians Reach for ‘Relatable’

For American politicians, the obsession with appealing to the everyman dates back to the raucous campaign of 1840.

via Retro Report on September 15, 2024

Kamala Harris stands in front of a crowd of voters holidng "Freedom" signs.

Kamala Harris’s “Freedom” Campaign

Democrats’ years-long efforts to reclaim the word are cresting in this year’s Presidential race.

by Peter Slevin via The New Yorker on August 23, 2024

People in red and blue with campaign signs and posters, yelling at each other across a widening chasm.

Divided We Stand: The Rise of Political Animosity

Scientists peered into the partisan abyss. They looked to see why hostility has become so high between groups with different political leanings.

by Carl-Johan Karlsson via Knowable Magazine on August 19, 2024

Fannie Lou Hamer speaks at the Democratic National Convention in 1964.

The Civil-Rights Era’s Great Unanswered Question

Is this America?

by Julian E. Zelizer via The Atlantic on August 17, 2024

A collage of the cover and various pages of the Walker Report.

How the 1968 DNC Devolved into ‘Unrestrained and Indiscriminate Police Violence’

As protesters prepare for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, a half-century old report provides lessons for preventing chaos.

by Lakeidra Chavis via The Marshall Project on August 14, 2024

Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson.

Hate Burst Out: Chicago, 1968

It is hard not to figure the 1968 election as inaugurating the cultural and political polarisation of the American electorate so evident today.

by Kim Phillips-Fein via London Review of Books on August 7, 2024

Angela Davis standing at podium, speaking at Communist Party USA event.

How and Why American Communism Failed

Plus: One historian’s about-face on the Communist record.

by Ronald Radosh via The Bulwark on August 2, 2024

Thomas Nast’s 1874 elephant illustration.

What History Tells Us Might Happen to the Republican Party

The signs that precede the crumbling of American political parties and the creation of new ones.

by Lindsay M. Chervinsky via The Bulwark on July 31, 2024

Biden's hand waving goodbye as he gets into a car.

The Democrats’ Crisis Isn’t Over

Biden’s withdrawal won’t solve all of Democrats’ problems — but it gives them a chance.

by Michael Kazin via Politico Magazine on July 23, 2024

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris standing behind President Joe Biden, who is giving a speech at podium.

How Democrats Gave Away Their Ability to Pick a New Nominee

Until the late 1960s, the Democratic Party could have simply anointed a replacement for President Biden. Now it's not so easy.

by Lawrence R. Jacobs via Made By History on July 22, 2024

Joe Biden sitting in the Oval Office.

There Has Been Nothing Like This in American History

Joe Biden is hardly the first president who has decided not to seek a second term—but the circumstances this time are unique.

by Fred Kaplan via Slate on July 21, 2024

People seated at town hall meeting.

What We Get Wrong About White Workers

Deindustrialization has helped create a right-wing turn in many Midwestern towns. Long traditions of labor militancy can explain why it hasn’t in others.

by Chris Maisano, Stephanie Ternullo via Jacobin on July 9, 2024

1924 Democratic convention at Madison Square Garden.

Why the 1924 Democratic National Convention Was the Longest and Most Chaotic of Its Kind

A century ago, the party took a record 103 ballots and 16 days of intense, violent debate to choose a presidential nominee.

by Eli Wizevich via Smithsonian on June 24, 2024

Republican elephant and Democratic donkey with crossed arms turned away from each other.

Party People

Many recoil at the thought of stronger political parties. But revitalized parties could be exactly what our ailing democracy needs.

by John Sides via Democracy Journal on June 13, 2024

How Conservatives Changed the Whole Point of American Political Parties

The rise of the right remade the GOP—and fundamentally changed how parties operated in American politics.

by Daniel Schlozman, Sam Rosenfeld via Made By History on June 10, 2024

Election Day in Philadelphia, John Lewis Krimmel.

A More Imperfect Union: How Differing National Visions Divided the North and the South

On the fragile facade of republicanism in 19th century America.

by Alan Taylor via Literary Hub on May 21, 2024

No Place to Make a Vote of Thanks

On the long tradition of Black third-party activism.

by Marc Blanc via HNN on April 23, 2024

Then President Donald Trump, right, and Joe Biden, then the Democratic presidential nominee, during the U.S. presidential debate at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 22, 2020.

The Biden-Trump Rematch May Mark the End of an Era

Over the course of U.S. history, presidential rematches have signaled momentous political upheavals.

by Bruce J. Schulman via Made By History on April 4, 2024

Make America Great Again hats in different colors of the rainbow.

Reaching the Heartland: Gay Republicans’ Message to Religious Americans

How gay Republicans tried to counter the religious right and show Christians it is ok to be gay.

by Neil J. Young via The Revealer on April 4, 2024

A large crowd listening to Harry Truman give a speech on a train.

Harry Truman's Train Ride

A whistle-stop train tour, and some plain speaking spur Harry Truman's come from behind win in 1948 over Thomas Dewey.

by Michael Liss via 3 Quarks Daily on March 25, 2024

Joe Biden and Donald Trump.

The Wild History of “Lesser of Two Evils” Voting

For as long as Americans have been subjected to lousy candidates, they’ve been told to suck it up and vote for one of them.

by Ginny Hogan via The Nation on March 19, 2024

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