The study of political parties  gets straight to the heart of American politics. The story of political  parties is about how we get along with one another. Political parties  grew outside the Constitution and the more formal framework of  government. No one planned or even wanted them. Parties developed as a  response to the dream of a unified government. While parties have taken  the country to the brink of violence, and beyond, they have also been  vehicles for avoiding violent conflict, and for channeling  disagreements.

This  course provides an understanding of how American politics works and can  help make sense of election results and political trends. By  understanding political parties, we can better understand what is going  on in American politics today and in which direction American politics  may be going.

Lecture 1 The Birth of Political PartiesLecture 2  The Origins of the Democratic PartyLecture 3  The Origins of the Republican PartyLecture 4  Third Parties in the Nineteenth CenturyLecture 5  Third Parties in the Twentieth CenturyLecture 6  Comparative Analysis and Party RealignmentLecture 7  Anti-Party ReformsLecture 8  The Electoral CollegeLecture 9  Reapportionment and RedistrictingLecture 10  Parties in CongressLecture 11  Party IdentificationLecture 12  The Solid SouthLecture 13  The Southern Strategy and the Transformation of the SouthLecture 14  The Future of the American Party System