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Author Aldrich, John H., 1947- author.

Title Why parties matter : political competition and democracy in the American South / John H. Aldrich and John D. Griffin.

Publication Info. Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2018.
©2018

Item Status

Description 1 online resource (xv, 300 pages) : illustrations
Series Chicago studies in American politics
Chicago studies in American politics.
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents Why parties matter. "Except in the South" ; Political parties, electoral competition, and effective democratic governance -- The exceptional South. Democratic-whig parties in the Jacksonian era ; Parties in the post-reconstruction era ; Parties in the Jim Crow South ; The Southern turn to Republicanism -- The democratic fruits of party competition. Party systems and electoral competition ; Competitive party systems and democratic responsiveness ; Competitive party systems and democratic effectiveness.
Summary Since the founding of the American Republic, the North and South have followed remarkably different paths of political development. Among the factors that have led to their divergence throughout much of history are differences in the levels of competition among the political parties. While the North has generally enjoyed a well-defined two-party system, the South has tended to have only weakly developed political parties and at times no system of parties to speak of. John H. Aldrich and John D. Griffin make a compelling case that competition between political parties is an essential component of a democracy that is responsive to its citizens and thus able to address their concerns. Tracing the history of the parties through four eras the Democratic-Whig party era that preceded the Civil War; the post-Reconstruction period; the Jim Crow era, when competition between the parties virtually disappeared; and the modern era Aldrich and Griffin show how and when competition emerged between the parties and the conditions under which it succeeded and failed. In the modern era, as party competition in the South has come to be widely regarded as matching that of the North, the authors conclude by exploring the question of whether the South is poised to become a one-party system once again with the Republican party now dominant.
Local Note eBooks on EBSCOhost EBSCO eBook Subscription Academic Collection - North America
Subject Political parties -- Southern States -- History.
Democracy -- Southern States -- History.
Elections -- Southern States -- History.
Southern States -- Politics and government -- History.
POLITICAL SCIENCE -- Political Process -- Elections.
POLITICAL SCIENCE -- Political Process -- General.
Democracy.
Elections.
Political parties.
Politics and government.
Southern States.
Genre/Form History.
Added Author Griffin, John David, 1968- author.
Other Form: Print version: Aldrich, John H., 1947- Why parties matter. Chicago : The University of Chicago, 2018 9780226495231 (DLC) 2017022086 (OCoLC)987437154
ISBN 9780226495408 (electronic bk.)
022649540X (electronic bk.)
9780226495231
022649523X
9780226495378
022649537X