''Realigning election
'' is a term from
political_science. It describes any
election which represents a bold departure from previous patterns of voting. Most specifically, it refers to any one of several
United_States presidential elections in which
geographic bases of power for each of the two
parties were significantly altered, resulting in a new political power structure and status quo. It is generally believed that a realigning election happens only after a shift in partisan preferences in the general populace.
The term is somewhat arbitrary, and its usage amongst political scientists does vary. Some believe that certain elections are realigning elections, others believe that they aren't. Here is presented a list of potential realigning elections, with disagreements noted:
Realigning Elections in history
U.S._presidential_election,_1800 -- Thomas_Jefferson
This election completed the turnover of power from the United_States_Federalist_Party, embodied in Alexander_Hamilton, to Thomas_Jefferson and his United_States_Democratic-Republican_Party. Power shifted from the more industrial New England to the Southern states and their agricultural interests. This exacerbated tensions over slavery.
U.S._presidential_election,_1824 -- John_Quincy_Adams
The reason this is often listed is that it redefined the party system in the United States. Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans split into two parties: the United_States_Democratic_Party and the Whig party. The Democrats were led by Andrew_Jackson (though the modern party traces its origins to Jefferson), while the Whigs were the opposition to Andrew_Jackson (who had won the most popular votes in the election). They were at first led by John_Quincy_Adams, though Henry_Clay was also very significant.
U.S._presidential_election,_1860 -- Abraham_Lincoln
This election marked the final downfall of the Whigs (who had sputtered throughout the 1850s) and the ascendence of the United_States_Republican_Party. Abraham Lincoln beat out three other contenders as the South split its electoral votes away from other Democratic contenders, allowing Lincoln, who carried every Northern state, to triumph. Lincoln's election was the proximate cause of the American_Civil_War. This represented the reverse of 1800, as electoral power flowed to the growing and industrializing North.
U.S._presidential_election,_1896 -- William_McKinley
The status of this election is hotly disputed; many historians do not consider it a realigning election. Others, however, believe that McKinley's tactics in beating William_Jennings_Bryan (as developed by Mark_Hanna) marked a sea change in the evolution of the modern presidency. McKinley raised a huge amount of money from business interests, outspending Bryan by 20 to 1. Bryan's message of populism, meanwhile, marked a new direction for the Democrats.
U.S._presidential_election,_1932 -- Franklin_Delano_Roosevelt
Of all the realigning elections, this one musters the most agreement from historians; it is the archetypal realigning election. FDR's New_Deal policies represented an entirely new phenomenon in American politics, which sprang out of nowhere in response to the Great_Depression which began in 1929 under Herbert_Hoover. In many ways, Roosevelt's legacy still defines the Democratic Party; he forged an enduring coalition of labor_unions, Jews, racial minorities, and Southerners. In both policies and politics, the election of 1932 took the country in an entirely different direction.
Modern realigning elections (?)
Some doubt exists today as to what elections (if any) could be considered realigning elections after 1932. Although several candidates have been proposed, there is no widespread agreement:
U.S._presidential_election,_1968 -- Richard_Nixon
This election is often cited due to the innovative campaign strategy of Nixon. In running against Hubert_Humphrey, he used what became known as the Southern_strategy. He appealed to white voters in the South with a call for "state's rights", which they interpreted as meaning that the federal government would no longer interfere on behalf of African_American's civil_rights as they had under Democratic presidents such as Lyndon_Johnson (who passed the Voting_Rights_Act and Civil_Rights_Act_of_1964). Just how conscious Nixon (or Republicans generally) were of this strategy is hotly contested. In addition, the realigning elections previously had tended to occur at 36-year intervals, lending support to this election's claim of realignment.
Many people do not consider 1968 a realigning election because control of Congress did not change; the Democrats would control the Senate until 1980 (and again from 1986 to 1994) and the House until 1994. Also missing was a marked change in the partisan orientation of the electorate.
U.S._presidential_election,_1980 -- Ronald_Reagan
In this election, Ronald_Reagan won a sweeping victory over Democrat Jimmy_Carter, who won only 6 states and 10% of the electoral vote. Republicans also took control of the Senate for the first time in over 25 years. Many people viewed Reagan's policies as sufficiently new to consider this a realigning election, and his iconic status within the Republican party would appear to confirm this.
On the other hand, detractors note that control of the House did not change. In addition, the Republicans lost the Senate again 6 years later, leading some to theorize that the Senators simply rode in on Reagan's coattails, and did not represent a true shift in the ideological preferences of their constituents. Also absent was a shift in partisan alignment from public_opinion_polls.
U.S._midterm_election,_1994
Republicans finally took back the House and Senate, controlling both chambers for the first time since 1952. In addition, that control has continued to date. Newt_Gingrich and his Contract_with_America seemed like a sufficiently innovative technique to qualify, and the overwhelming nature of the Republicans' victory (they gained 50-odd seats, in a chamber of only 435—the total gain in elections since has been in the single digits) would seem to make this a candidate.
Critics note that this, unlike the others, is a midterm election. They also note the reelection of Bill_Clinton in 1996, and the even partisan split in opinion polls.
Realigning elections in outside the United States
UK_general_election,_1979 -- Conservative victory; Margaret_Thatcher Prime Minister
This election brought the Conservatives into government where they remained for 18 years. Thatcher's policies of monetarism and privatisation represented a very different strand of Conservatism to that of previous governments and a bold shift from the post_war_consensus that had existed since 1945. The shockwaves led to a new party (the Social Democratic Party) and a long period of opposition for Labour during which time they were reformed and transformed into New_Labour before they returned to government. At a more base level it led to a shift in voting patterns as the traditional class based voting started to break down and many of the working classes voted Conservative, whilst at the same time many public sector professionals turned away from them.
ROC_presidential_election,_2000 (Taiwan) -- Chen_Shui-bian
Though more popular and consistently ranked higher in the polls, James_Soong failed to gain the ruling Kuomintang's (KMT) nomination over incumbent Vice President Lien_Chan. As a result, he announced his candidacy as an independent candidate, and was consequently expelled from the party. The split in the KMT vote resulted in a victory for Chen_Shui-bian of the Democratic_Progressive_Party, even though he won only 39% of the popular vote. After the election, Soong founded the People_First_Party, which attracted members from the KMT and the pro-unification New_Party, which was by that time beginning to fade. Angry from the defeat, the KMT expelled chairman Lee_Teng-hui, who was president until 2000 and was widely suspected of causing the KMT split so that Chen would win. Lee then founded the pro-independence Taiwan_Solidarity_Union. The impact of these events changed the political landscape of Taiwan. Not only did the KMT lose the presidency for the first time in half a century, but its policies swung away from Lee's influence and it began intra-party reform. The two newly-founded parties became far more viable than other minor parties in the past, and the multi-party nature of Taiwan's politics was confirmed by the Legislative elections of 2001.
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