Reformist third parties: The rise and fall of the Progressive Party in the United States and the Democratic Movement for Change in Israel.
Item
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Title
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Reformist third parties: The rise and fall of the Progressive Party in the United States and the Democratic Movement for Change in Israel.
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Identifier
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AAI9605573
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identifier
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9605573
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Creator
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Bitton, Mary (Miri).
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Contributor
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Adviser: Asher Arian
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Date
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1995
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Political Science, General | History, United States | History, Middle Eastern
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Abstract
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New parties often arise in times of political discontent with an existing party system and with an existing government, and occasionally they gain some eminence. Yet, new parties rarely succeed in displacing the major established ones. Often they simply disappear or become insignificant. In contrast, established parties exhibit an impressive ability to persist and usually remain the principal contenders to lead governments. Political change, however, occurs regularly: policies, power and personalities are replaced. A key issue, then, is to elucidate processes by which parties and party systems are transformed. How is structural continuity reconciled with social and political change?;This study addresses these issues by considering the careers of two political parties, both of which were reformist third parties: the American Progressive party of 1912 (the Bull Moose), and the Israeli Democratic Movement for Change (the DMC) of 1977. In order to understand political change in democracies and the roles of political parties, I analyze their rise, their performance and their eventual disappearance.;Both parties made very promising and unprecedented strong showings in the first elections they contested. Each was new and reformist by agenda, centrist vis-a-vis the major parties, and with leaders and supporters who were solidly middle class. The rhetoric employed by both was anti-party and anti-"politics as usual." The two parties emerged within mainstream politics in their respective systems as protest and reform movements, and their electoral successes remain unmatched: Theodore Roosevelt gained 27.4 percent of the vote; the DMC gained 11.6 percent of the vote. Nonetheless, by the time of the following election, these parties were no longer contenders.;The central argument of this study is that such reformist third parties are instrumental in maintaining the linkage between citizens and government in a democracy. When the major parties are unresponsive to new issues, or ignore the demands made by certain groups, then the emergence of an alternative party is likely. The major parties usually respond by adopting policies corresponding to those advanced by the reformist third party. Consequently, some measure of responsiveness is restored.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
