Elite Strategy and Electoral Appeals in 19th Century American Party Platforms

• In Event: US Parties at the State and Local Level

Abstract

Over the course of the nineteenth century in the United States, political parties attempted to reconcile local, state, and national conflicts to forge a winning electoral coalition. The challenges in crafting such a coalition reflects the complex relationship between elites and voters on the influence of party policy. One question is how elite perception of voter demands influenced the creation and presentation of policies in the electoral arena. A key vehicle through which to assess this strategy of political elites is the party platform, the official statement by a party in an election. Previous research has demonstrated that throughout this period, the major parties tended to emphasize the same issues in their platforms, while, for the most part, offering competing positions on those same issues. This study builds on that research by gauging and comparing the scope and breadth of the platforms in individual elections. Platforms are elite documents. Thus, party leaders may craft platforms to appeal to specific constituencies, such as other political elites, partisans, or various sectors of the electorate, to present an ideologically coherent list of proposals, or to present an identity for the party. The number of policies presented in a platform—its comprehensiveness—suggests the constituencies to which elites believe they need to appeal to win the election. This study examines the platforms of the national and state party platforms of the major parties during presidential election years from 1840 through 1896 to explore the conditions under which a party advances a more, or less, comprehensive platform. I predict that if one party presents a platform focused on one or two policies, the other opposing party will offer a more comprehensive appeal to the voters. Overall, this study speaks to the tensions inherent in a democratic republic in which political elites attempt to shape or be responsive to the concerns of their voters.

Author

• Adam Silver, Emmanuel College