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A 'party system' is a concept in comparative political science concerning the system of government by political parties. The idea is that political parties control the government, have a stable base of mass popular support, and create internal mechanisms for controlling funding, information and nominations.

Contents

U.S. Models

Bibliography: World

Bibliography: US

External links

References

U.S. Models

The concept of party system was introduced by English scholar James Bryce in ''American Commonwealth'' (1885).
''American Party Systems'' was a major textbook by Charles Merriam in 1920s. In 1967 the most important single breakthrough appeared, ''The American Party Systems. Stages of Political Development,'' edited by William Nisbet Chambers and Walter Dean Burnham. It brought together historians and political scientists who agreed on a common framework and numbering system. Thus Chambers published ''The First Party System'' in 1972. Burnham published numerous articles and books.
Closely related is the concept of ''critical elections'' (introduced by V. O. Key in 1955), and "realignments."
A political science college textbook explains:
:"Scholars generally agree that realignment theory identifies five distinct party systems with the following approximate dates and major parties: 1. 1796-1816, First Party System: Jeffersonian Republicans and Federalists; 2. 1840-1856, Second Party System: Democrats and Whigs; 3. 1860-1896, Third Party System: Republicans and Democrats; 4. 1896-1932, Fourth Party System: Republicans and Democrats; 5. 1932-, Fifth Party System: Democrats and Republicans."^[1]

Bibliography: World

★ Lauri Karvonen and Stein Kuhnle. ''Party Systems and Voter Alignments Revisited'' (2000)

★ Paul G. Lewis and Paul Webb, eds. ''Pan-European Perspectives on Party Politics'' (2003)

★ Seymour M. Lipset and Stein Rokkan, eds. ''Party Systems And Voter Alignments'' (1967)

★ Scott Mainwaring and Timothy R. Scully. ''Building Democratic Institutions: Party Systems in Latin America'' (1996)

★ Peter Mair (ed.) ''The West European Party System'' (Oxford University Press, 1990) online excerpt pp. 302-310

★ Sartori, Giovanni . ''Parties and Party Systems: A framework for analysis '' (1976; reprint in 2005)

★ James Walch. ''Faction and Front: Party Systems in South India'' (1976)

Bibliography: US

★ Numan V. Bartley, "Voters and Party Systems: A Review of the Recent Literature," ''The History Teacher,'' Vol. 8, No. 3 (May, 1975), pp. 452-469. online at JSTOR

★ Beck, Paul Allen. "Micropolitics in Macro Perspective: the Political History of Walter Dean Burnham." ''Social Science History'' 1986 10(3): 221-245. Issn: 0145-5532 Fulltext in Jstor

★ David Brady and Joseph Stewart, Jr. "Congressional Party Realignment and Transformations of Public Policy in Three Realignment Eras," ''American Journal of Political Science, Vol. 26, No. 2 (May, 1982), pp. 333-360 online at JSTOR Looks at links among cross-cutting issues, electoral realignments, the U.S. House and public policy changes during the Civil War, 1890s and New Deal realignments. In each case the policy changes are voted through by a partisan "new" majority party. The Civil War and 1890s realignments were more polarized than was the New Deal realignment, and the extent of party structuring of issue dimensions was greater.

★ William Nisbet Chambers and Walter Dean Burnham, eds. ''The American Party Systems. Stages of Political Development,'' (1967)

★ Chambers, William Nisbet. ''Political Parties in a New Nation: The American Experience, 1776–1809'' (1963)

★ Hofstadter, Richard. ''The Idea of a Party System: The Rise of Legitimate Opposition in the United States, 1780-1840'' (1970)

★ James, Scott C. ''Presidents, Parties, and the State: A Party System Perspective on Democratic Regulatory Choice, 1884-1936'' (2000)

★ Jensen, Richard. "American Election Analysis: A Case History of Methodological Innovation and Diffusion," in S. M. Lipset, ed, Politics and the Social Sciences (Oxford University Press, 1969), 226-43.

★ Jensen, Richard. "History and the Political Scientist," in S. M. Lipset, ed, Politics and the Social Sciences (Oxford University Press, 1969), , 1-28.

★ Jensen, Richard. "Historiography of Political History," in Jack Greene ed., ''Encyclopedia of American Political History'' (Scribners, 1984), 1:1-25. online

★ Jensen, Richard. "The Changing Shape of Burnham's Political Universe," ''Social Science History'' 10 (1986) 209-19 Issn: 0145-5532 Fulltext in Jstor

★ Renda, Lex. "Richard P. McCormick and the Second American Party System." ''Reviews in American History'' (1995) 23(2): 378-389. Issn: 0048-7511 Fulltext in Project Muse.

External links

★ Party Systems - a much more detailed article at ''Citizendium''

★ A detailed bibliography

References

1. Robert C. Benedict, Matthew J. Burbank and Ronald J. Hrebenar, ''Political Parties, Interest Groups and Political Campaigns.'' Westview Press. 1999. Page 11.