Democratic Party (United States)
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The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Democratic Party was founded around 1828 by Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active party.
The Democrats' once dominant worldview was classical liberalism, while, especially in the rural South, populism was its leading characteristic. In the 1890s, under the influence of its three-time defeated presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan and the Populist Party, the party moved to the left from an economic point of view and, since Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal coalition in the 1930s, it has promoted a social-liberal platform, supporting social justice.
Well into the 20th century, the party had conservative pro-business and southern conservative-populist anti-business wings. The New Deal Coalition of 1932–1964 attracted strong support from voters of recent European extraction—many of whom were Catholics based in the cities. After Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal the business wing withered outside the South. After the racial turmoil of the 1960s most southern whites and many northern Catholics moved into the Republican Party at the presidential level. The once-powerful labor union element became smaller and less supportive after 1970. White evangelicals and Southerners became heavily Republican at the state and local level in the 1990s. However, African Americans became a major Democratic element after 1964. After 2000, Latin Americans, Asians, the LGBTQI community, single women and professional women moved toward the party as well. The Northeast and West Coast became Democratic strongholds by 1990 after the Republicans stopped appealing to socially liberal voters there. Overall the Democratic Party has retained a membership lead over its major rival the Republican Party (GOP).
Today, the House Democratic caucus is composed mostly of progressives and centrists, with a smaller minority of conservative Democrats.
The party's philosophy of modern liberalism advocates social and economic equality, along with the welfare state. It seeks to provide government intervention and regulation in the economy. These interventions, such as the introduction of social programs, support for labor unions, moves toward universal health care and equal opportunity, consumer protection, and environmental protection form the core of the party's economic policy.
The party has united with smaller left-wing regional parties throughout the country such as Farmer-Labor Party in Minnesota and the Nonpartisan League in North Dakota.
There have been 15 Democratic presidents: the first was Andrew Jackson, who served from 1829 to 1837. The most recent is current U.S. President Barack Obama, who has been in office since 2009.
In the 114th Congress, following the 2014 elections, Democrats hold a minority of seats in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The party also holds 18 governorships and control of a minority of state legislatures, as well as the mayoralty of Washington, D.C.
See also
- 2016 Democratic National Convention
- Democratic organizations
- List of United States Democratic Party presidential tickets
- Political party strength in U.S. states
- Politics of the United States
- Republican Party (United States)
