Anthony de Jesús

Michael E. McGerr, The Decline of Popular Politics: The American North, 1865-1928 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1986).

1. As McGerr describes it, what did political participation actually mean in both the 19^th and 20^th centuries?
2. According to McGerr, what variables impacted voter turnout and political participation?
3. According to the McGerr thesis, what impact might the Internet have on voter participation?
4. What impact did reformers have on the decline in political participation described in the book?

Preface

• Looks to explain why politics no longer excites Americans.
• Mid-19^th Century characterized by intense partisanship and boisterous campaigns. 20^th century characterized by low voter turnout, skepticism of parties and politicians, emphasis on objective discussion of issues, and attraction to charismatic leaders.

Chapter 1-Popular Politics

• Popular politics of the 19^th century very boisterous, loud, and active.
• Not all men could vote, but suffrage rights did not determine democracy. Other ways of participating à parades, marches, pole raisings, demonstrations, etc…
• In the south disenfranchisement was systemically carried out.
• Popular politics of the 19^th c. was entwined in a subjective, demonstrative kind of partisanship
• 1860s-70s liberal upper class reformers formulated a less partisan and less demonstrative (i.e. less democratic?) type of politics.
• Political style – "The history of political style embraces, not the reasons men voted Democratic or Republican, but only why it was natural for them to vote and to vote only for the candidates of a single party.
• Changes in political style during the 20^th c. flowed from the needs and experiences of different classes in the North.
• Understanding the political style of the 19^th c. is of vital importance to understanding decline of pop. Politics in the 20^th c.

Chapter 2-Partisanship

• Third party system of Dems and Reps helped boost turnout.
• Parties helped to ensure high level of political participation b/c level of partisanship in the north was extreme.
• Party affiliation was like religious affiliation.
• 19^th c. party politics was aggressive, demonstrative, contentious, and often vicious.
• Partisanship emerged from institutions of public life, from the columns of the press and the rituals of election campaigns.
• Newspapers set tone of public life and established its language.
• Press and politics closely tied together
• Press was absolutely partisan à couldn’t survive if it wasn’t overtly partisan
• Partisan newspapers encouraged readers to view the world in black and white terms, which helped to maintain extreme partisanship and high participation.
• 19^th c. readers recognized that partisan press twisted the news but accepted it as the normal way of things.
• Spectacular electioneering also helped maintain extremes in partisanship and thus heightened level of participation. à Marching bands, battalions, companies, etc…
• Broadening public sphere
• Partisan display reflected the class relations and communal autonomy of Northern towns and cities in the mid-nineteenth century
• Political spectacle provided leisure activity for entertainment-starved people. In many cases it was the only diversionary activity from the normal labors of life. (Bowling alone)
• Workers and farmers used political spectacle to make sure leaders remembered how important these particular groups were.
• Paternalist dimensions of politics and spectacle à most elected officials came from upper classes while participants in the spectacle were in the lower classes.
• With telegraphs and railroads politics became increasingly nationalized.
• Men voted twice in an election—once at the voting booth and once by participating in political spectacle.
• Debate on usefulness of spectacle in winning over uncommitted voters. Perhaps educating voters via quieter means more useful.
• Regardless of usefulness of spectacle in gaining uncommitted, spectacle seem to have obvious effect on creating high levels of participation.
• "bright color and loud noises" theory of political participation.
• Spectacular campaign and newspapers of the mid 19^th c. helped increase turnout by simplifying politics.

Chapter 3-Partisanship Redefined

• Reformers would use newspapers to reach the public
• Early reformers against universal suffrage rights and tried to undermine those rights.
• Felt that many who voted were incapable of making informed judgments.
• Reformers wanted Education requirements or property ownership to determine who could vote.
• Overall, unsuccessful although Tilden Commission was the closest they would come to such restrictions on the vote.
• Finally moving away from suffrage restrictions they turned to educating voters, rejuvenation of upper class, and limitations of the party.
• If you cant take away suffrage rights from the ignorant masses then educate them.
• Of course, reformers had to fight recalcitrant parties who were not necessarily supportive of reform goals.
• Reformers tried to chip away at party loyalty by arguing that independents had the most power and could have a great influence on politics. More so than party automatons.
• Reformers as independents à "Balance-of-power" vote.
• Reformers also looked to use various clubs and associations to educate the public.
• By trying to change the political style from the spectacular to the educational reformers were creating a didactic, elitist type of politics.
• Lastly, reformers tried to change politics by placing restrictions on party à civil service reform, which would ensure that "uneducated" party hacks would not control government jobs and only educated elites could.
• Also, looked to secret ballots (Australian system). Spectacular politics of 19^th century finished. Now politics was replaced by restrained, secret behavior.

Chapter 4-Educational Politics

• Spectacular politics of marches and parades replaced by educational politcs of pamphlets and documents.
• 1884 Presidential campaign is turning point. Tilden presidential campaign turned away from spectacular to focus on quite appeals to undecided vote.
• Attempts at using old spectacular politics were mocked as old fashioned and ineffective.
• This is the emergence of modern campaign techniques.
• Democrats adopted new techniques quicker than Republicans. Why?
• Parties attempt to influence newspapers. However, newspapers would have more influence if they were perceived as unbiased. Total opposite from mid-19^th c.
• Press would be the primary medium in educating the public.
• However, bi-partisan educating techniques being used seem to alienate many voters. People were bored and confused with the modern campaign. Voters didn’t want the campaign to feel like school, but that’s how it was feeling and the voter became apathetic. Participation decreases.
• Of course, elitism of educational politics also turned off many voters.

Questions:

1. Do you agree with Plunkitt's definition of honest graft and dishonest graft?

2. How valuable is Plunkitt's advice to young men going into politics?

3. What is Plunkitt's perspective on reformers?

4.  How does he perceive the upper tier of the republican bureaucracy in New York State?

5. What is his concept of loyalty and patronage?