Functions of a Political Party

1. Representation
1. Parties respond to articulate the public, and so we have 2 types of party
  1. 1. 'Catch-all' parties
    1. Develop policies aimed to appeal to a wide range of people
  2. 2. 'Programmatic' Parties
    1. Tend of have a fixed (or narrow) agenda
2. Limits to the ability of parties to represent the public
  1. The elecorate isn't always well informed, or rational in choices
  2. Image and Personality may sway the electorate more than policies
  3. The FPTP system gives a majority to a party which earns 40% of the vote
2. Policy formation
1. Political parties are the main method used by society, to from it's goals and public policies
2. For policies to be seen a number of ways are used by parties
  1. Party forums
  2. Annual conferances
  3. Election manisfestos
3. There are limits to the effectiveness of policy formation
  1. Parties now seem to fight for the middle ground, and do not have distinct ideologys
  2. Parties tend to follow public opinion, rather than shape it through clear ideological stances
3. Recruitment of Leaders
1. All political leaders begin as party members
2. Political expression is gained through;
  1. Conversing
  2. Debating
  3. Involvement with local constituency
3. Political expression can lead to
  1. A nomination as a parliamentry candidate
  2. A senior role
4. There are limits to the effectiveness of the recruitment of leaders;
  1. Government is formed from the party with the majority, in the House of Commons, so there is a small pool of candidates
  2. Electorineering, and other party activities may be poor training for running a large government department
4. Organisation of Government
1. Parties help to form Government
2. Give government stability
3. Facilitate cooperation between parliament and the executiver
4. Provide a way source of oppositition, so government can scrutinised
5. There has been a decline in party unity, since the 1970s, this has tended to weaken the majority party's control of the House of Commons
5. Participation and mobilisation of the electorate
1. Parties provide opportunities for citizens to join, and potentially shape policies
2. Parties help to educate and moblise the electorate through;
  1. Canvassing
  2. Public meetings
  3. Advertising
  4. Poster campaigns
  5. Party broadcasts
3. Limits top the effectiveness:
  1. Voter loyalty has delclined
    1. 44% of voters had a strong attachment to a party in 1964
    2. 10% of voters had a strong attachment in 2005
  2. Turnout has declined
  3. Membership to a party has fallen
    1. 3 million people where a member of a party in the 60s
    2. 800,000 in the early 2000s

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Functions of a Political Party

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	Created by Phoebe Fletcher almost 10 years ago