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Questions or comments? Please contact the editor, Denise Shanks
This exercise relates to Chapter 9’s Policy debate on two party systems versus multi-party systems. First, you will explore the partisan split in the US and how that split played out in the 2004 election. Then you will compare Bush and Kerry’s views on key issues and explore how a two-party system could affect the candidates for office. Finally, you will explain your preference for two- or multi-party systems.
1. In multiparty systems, political conflict is played out between the various political parties. According to the authors in the “Policy Debate” section of the chapter, how do countries with two-party systems resolve these conflicts?
2. Read this article from the Christian Science Monitor: http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0714/p01s03-usgn.html
What does the article mean when it states that America is split between “red” and “blue” Americas?
3. What does the article mean when it says that the correlation between ideology and party has been growing much stronger in recent years?
4. Go to http://www.npr.org/index_election2004special.html and look at the map of the 2004 election results.
Name your state and list whether it is a red or blue state.
5. Compare that map to the “Purple America” map of at http://www.princeton.edu/~rvdb/JAVA/election2004/ . In what way does the purple map better illustrate Americans’ divisions?
6. Take the election issue quiz at http://www.csmonitor.com/specials/decision2004/quiz/
List the three categories of issues the quiz covers. Despite this trend towards correlating party and ideology, why do you think John Kerry and George Bush were both near the center on all three types of issues? What role does having a two-party system play in choosing centrists to run for office?
7. Your text points out that multiparty systems give voters more choices of candidates. Given the relative centrism of both parties’ candidates, how would having a multiparty system affect the positions of candidates for office?
8. Reread the “Policy Debate” in chapter 9. Do you think a multiparty system would be better for the US? Why or why not?
