How Political Parties Harm Democracy - 1957 Words

Roy Young Professor Goodman PSCI 4300 U.S. Congress 11 March 2013 How Political Parties Harm Democracy Political parties exist in a democracy as a way for likeminded individuals to be united over a set of shared beliefs. (Daniel) Political parties allow the members of the party to elect politicians to government positions in order to advance their beliefs. (Hargrave) The political parties offer their members strength in numbers, by uniting large numbers of individuals into a collective group; they can select the best candidates to pursue their interests, as opposed to having thousands of individuals running for office based on a very narrow spectrum of beliefs. (Daniel) While political parties help organize the election process and†¦show more content†¦The ways in which people vote have led to a situation where there are two political parties that dominate the elections. This leads to an inability of the voters to choose the candidates of their likings. The existence of political parties has led to a situation in the United States that is inconsistent with the intentions of a representational style of government that the country was formed on. The existence of these political parties has taken much of the power and ability to control the government away from the citizens. (Hargrave) The United States government is set up in a way that allows the people to elect individuals that they see best fit for serving their needs and desires. This is evident in the House of Representatives. In the House of Representatives, each representative is elected by the people of his district. The citizens of each district vote on the candidate that will best serve their needs once in Washington D.C. (Davidson) Although the representatives are elected based on their promises to their constituencies, they face a great challenge once in office, and that is the political party to which they belong. While serving in the House of Representatives, th e individual congressmen that are elected by the citizens of their districts are expected to comply with the beliefs of the political party that they belong to. By having to vote on issues based on theShow MoreRelatedThe Detrimental Practice of Gerrymandering1004 Words   |  5 Pagespractices exist that greatly harm the American public. One of these dangerous practices, known as gerrymandering, occurs in nearly every state. While some claim that the practice helps America, in reality gerrymandering harms American democracy and safety. Gerrymandering greatly affects society, and must become illegal to insure fair representation, the democratic processes in America continues, and America continues to thrive. 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