The Democratic Party is one of the two major political parties in the United States, along with its contemporary rival, the Republican Party. Founded in 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, it is the oldest existing political party in the United States.
History[]
Foundation and Early Years[]
The modern Democratic Party emerged from the old Democratic-Republican Party of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, which had dominated American politics since the end of the War of 1812 and subsequent collapse of their Federalist Party rivals. In 1824 the party split over the choice of successor for then-President James Monroe, with many of those who supported Jeffersonian principles of agrarian democracy coalescing behind Senator from Tennessee Andrew Jackson, while opposing factions assisted Speaker of the House Henry Clay in the formation of the Whig Party.
While representing a wide range of views, Democrats during this period shared a commitment to Jeffersonian agrarian democracy and viewed the federal government as an enemy of individual liberty. They believed that government intervention in the economy benefited only special-interest groups and corporations, and opposed the creation of a federal bank and the usage of paper currency. They opposed the creation of reform programs that called for the government to take a more active role in everyday affairs as interfering with individual liberty and personal responsibility.
The Democratic Party held a small but decisive advantage over their Whig rivals throughout the first half of the nineteenth century, and they captured the presidency six times between the party’s founding and the American Civil War. Under Democratic Presidents John Tyler and James K. Polk, the United States expanded its territory to include Texas and much of the modern Southwestern United States. This expansion came at a great cost, however, as the issue of slavery in the new territories came to dominate every facet of American politics and divided the Democratic Party along regional lines.
In the 1860 Presidential Election, Democrats found themselves divided over the issue of slavery. Southern pro-slavery radicals, dubbed “Fire-Eaters”, staged a walkout at the National Convention when a resolution supporting the extension of slavery into the Western territories even if the voters in those territories decided against it was defeated, and they nominated the pro-slavery Vice President John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky for president. The Northern Democrats nominated Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois for president, resulting in the unusual situation of having two different Democratic candidates running for the presidency. The fracturing of the Democrats along regional lines allowed the newly-formed anti-slavery Republican Party to capture the presidency, leading to the election of Abraham Lincoln and the onset of the American Civil War.
Civil War and Reconstruction[]
While Southern Democrats joined the rebellious Confederate States during the Civil War, Northern Democrats further divided themselves into War Democrats and Peace Democrats. Peace Democrats, nicknamed “Copperheads” by their Republican rivals, were led by Ohio Representative Clement L. Vallandingham and were opposed to the war, desiring an immediate peace settlement with the Confederacy. In contrast, the War Democrats supported the war effort and the actions of Republican President Abraham Lincoln, who formed a National Union Party ticket in 1864 with Democratic Senator Andrew Johnson as the nominee for Vice President to attract the War Democrats to his cause.
The Democratic Party was largely eclipsed during the second half of the nineteenth century by the Republicans, who claimed success in saving the Union during the Civil War, abolishing slavery, and enfranchising the freedmen. During Reconstruction, Southern Democratic “Redeemers” argued in favor of a quick reintegration of the Southern states into the Union and benefited from white Southerners’ hostility towards the Republican Party. Following the Compromise of 1877 and subsequent end of Reconstruction, the Redeemers ousted Republicans in the South from power and violently disenfranchised African Americans, turning the region into a reliably Democratic stronghold (the so-called “Solid South”).
The Democratic Party during the period was dominated by conservative, pro-business Bourbon Democrats located in the North, joined by their Redeemer colleagues in the South. The party also attracted a number of immigrants, particularly Irish Catholics and German Lutherans, as well as unskilled laborers and farmers in New England and the Ohio River Valley. Led by New York Governor Grover Cleveland, the party crusaded against corruption and high tariffs, defended the gold standard and denounced bimetallism, and opposed imperialism and overseas expansion. Cleveland managed to win two non-consecutive presidential terms in 1884 and 1892 in an era otherwise dominated by Republican presidents.
Progressive Realignment and Resurgence[]
President Cleveland’s second term was marred by the Panic of 1893, leading to a stunning Republican victory in the 1894 midterm elections that virtually eliminated the Democratic Party north of the Mason-Dixon line. Supporters of populist agrarianism and silver-backed currency seized control of the party at the 1896 Democratic National Convention held in Chicago on 7-11 July, nominating Nebraska Representative and famed orator William Jennings Bryan for president. Bryan vigorously campaigned against his Republican opponent William McKinley, delivering over 500 speeches in 100 days in a massive cross-country speaking tour, but was defeated by a decisive electoral vote of 271-176. Bryan again became the party’s nominee in 1900 and 1908, both times losing to his Republican opponents.
After largely being excluded from national politics following the Civil War, the Democratic Party began to see a resurgence thanks to the arrival of new immigrant voting blocs. Many of the Progressives in the party sought the support of labor unions such as the American Federation of Labor (AFL). The Democrats took control of the House in 1910, followed by Woodrow Wilson’s ascent to the presidency in 1912 following the Republican Party split. Wilson effectively led Congress to put to rest the issues of tariffs, money, and antitrust laws, which had dominated politics for 40 years, with new progressive laws. His insistence on maintaining American neutrality throughout the Weltkrieg secured his reelection in 1916, a policy which he continued until the end of the war.
Democratic Secretary of the Treasury William G. McAdoo was elected to succeed Wilson in 1920, continuing the Democratic revival in national politics. McAdoo continued the isolationist foreign policy of his predecessor, beginning the process of withdrawing American troops from Haiti, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. Democratic fortunes turned, however, when in 1925 the British Revolution and subsequent crash of the New York Stock Exchange announced the onset of the Great Depression. The Republican ticket of Herbert Hoover and Charles Curtis for president and vice president respectively easily defeated Democratic nominees Al Smith and Joseph Robinson in the 1928 Presidential Election.
Present[]
The Democratic Party somewhat recovered in the 1932 Presidential Election, peeling off several states from the incumbent Republicans but not enough to secure a majority in the Electoral College. Despite this, the party has suffered substantial defections in the South to the America First Party (AFP) of Louisiana Senator Huey Long, a former Democrat and right-wing populist. To counter the threat posed by radicals from the AFP and the rising Socialist Party of America (SPA), several high-ranking Democrats, Republicans, and Progressives have proposed a coalition ticket under Minnesota Governor Floyd B. Olson to prevent either party from taking power. Failing this, Speaker of the House John Nance Garner is expected to become the party's nominee for the 1936 Presidential Election.
Ideology[]
The Democratic Party is divided into two wings, the social liberals in the Northeast and the social conservatives in the Southeast. The liberal wing of the party supports increasing investments in highway infrastructure, liberalization of trade, promotion of business interests, banking regulation, and a liberal tax policy. The conservative wing of the party supports the enaction of trade tariffs, racial segregation, investments in the Southern United States, and promotion of traditional values. Both wings promote the "gospel of wealth" espoused by steel magnate Andrew Carnegie that calls for upper-class citizens to give generously to charity.