In politics, party switching is any change in party affiliation of a partisan public figure, usually one who is currently holding elected office. It is most well known as part of American politics. In the United States' dominant two-party system, the switches generally occur between the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, although there have also been a number of notable switches to and from third parties, and even between third parties. Use of the term party switch often connotes a transfer of held power from one party to another.
The majority of party switchers in the modern era have switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party. This behavior has been most widespread in the South.
Motivations
There are a number of reasons why an elected official, or someone seeking office, might choose to switch parties. One reason is ethical obligation--the person feels their views are no longer aligned with those of their current party.
A second reason is to gain power and influence. The incumbent may be a member of the minority party in a legislature and would like to gain the advantages of being in the majority party, such as the potential to chair a committee.
Another reason is simply "to get elected." This may be the primary reason when the opposing party's base in a constituency is reaching a size that threatens the safe reelection of the incumbent.
History
The nineteenth century
The shifting of allegiance between political parties was much more common during the nineteenth century than it is today. It took several years for political parties as we know them today to coalesce after the founding of the United States, and many parties formed and fell apart rapidly.
A massive party switch occurred in the 1800s and 1810s when many members of the United States Federalist Party joined the United States Democratic-Republican Party. When this party fell apart in the 1820s, its members all switched to various political parties, including the United States Whig Party, as well as the Democratic, National Republican, Anti-Jackson and Anti-Mason Parties. The Republican Party was also formed by a massive party switch in 1854 when northern members of the Whig, American and Free Soil parties, along with a few northern Democrats, formed the Republican Party, and many Southern Whigs became Democrats. Following the United States Civil War the Republican Party faced several massive party switches. As Reconstruction ended, many Southern Republicans became Democrats. In 1872 Republicans dissatisfied with President Ulysses S. Grant formed the Liberal Republican Party and had a joint presidential campaign with the Democrats. Most Liberal Republicans soon returned to the main Republican Party, however. A similar situation occurred in 1884 when the mugwumps left the Republican Party and supported the Democratic presidential candidate, later rejoining the Republican party. By the late 19th century, as the Democratic and Republican parties became more established, however, party switching became less frequent.
The twentieth century
The shifts in American voter demographics beginning in the second half of the twentieth century - the southern states from Democratic to Republican, and New England, the Great Lakes states, and the coastal states from Republican to Democratic - have prompted several incumbent federal legislators and many state legislators to switch parties.
Notable party switchers
Notable party switchers of the modern era include:
Democrat to Republican
- 1962 - Floyd Spence, while a state representative from South Carolina, ran for the House of Representatives that year and lost, later elected to the state senate as a Republican before making a successful run for the House
- 1964 - Strom Thurmond, while U.S. senator from South Carolina
- 1965 - Albert Watson, while U. S. Representative from South Carolina (resigned before switching parties and re-won his seat in a special election)
- 1970 - Jesse Helms, two years before running for the U.S. Senate from North Carolina
- 1973 - Mills E. Godwin Jr., Democratic governor of Virginia from 1966 to 1970, moved to the Republican Party and was reelected, serving as governor again from 1974 to 1978.
- 1983 - Phil Gramm, while U.S. Representative from Texas (resigned before switching parties and re-won his seat in a special election)
- 1991 - Buddy Roemer, governor of Louisiana switched parties shortly before the beginning of his reelection campaign, which was not successful.
- 1994 - Richard C. Shelby, while U.S. Senator from Alabama
- 1995 - Jimmy Hayes, while U.S. Representative from Louisiana
- 1995 - Greg Laughlin, while U.S. Representative from Texas
- 1995 - Ben Nighthorse Campbell, while U.S. Senator from Colorado
- 1995 - Wilbert J. "Billy" Tauzin, while U.S. Representative from Louisiana
- 1995 - Nathan Deal, while U.S. Representative from Georgia
- 1996 - Wes Watkins, running for U.S. Representative from Oklahoma; from 1977 to 1991 Watkins had served as a Democrat, and in 1996 he chose to run for his old seat as a Republican
- 1996 - Norm Coleman, while mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota
- 2001 - Michael Bloomberg, before running for mayor of New York City
- 2004 - Ralph Hall, while U.S. Representative from Texas
- 2004 - Rodney Alexander, while U.S. Representative from Louisiana (his switch just before the filing deadline prevented the Democratic party from fielding a viable candidate in the race)
Though he never formally changed his affiliation, former U.S. Senator Zell B. Miller (D-Georgia), caucused with the Senate Republicans and spoke at the 2004 Republican National Convention. Former Democratic New York City mayor Ed Koch also announced his support for Bush.
Democrat to third party/independent
Republican to Democrat
- 1971 - John Lindsay, while mayor of New York City
- 1971 - Leon Panetta, switched parties while not in or running for public office. He later became a U.S. representative from California (1976) and White House Chief of Staff (1994).
- 1973 - Don Riegle, while U.S. representative from Michigan
- 1977 - Peter Peyser , after three terms in the House as a New York Republican, vacated his seat to run for nomination for the Senate in 1976. After his unsuccessful attempt, he switched to the Democratic party and regained his House seat in 1978.
- 1999 - Michael Forbes, while U.S. representative from New York
- 2004 - Larry Drown , Vermont politician, ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the statewide positions of secretary of state and attorney general in previous elections, switched to the Democratic party after hearing John Edwards speak in New Hampshire. Drown then ran for Congress, but received only 7% of the vote, coming in third place.
Republican to third party/independent
- 1912 - Theodore Roosevelt, former President of the United States, left the Republican Party after a failed attempt to be nominated for President again. He ran as the candidate of the newly formed Progressive Party, better known as the Bull Moose Party, and received second place, doing better than the Republican candidate but being defeated by the Democratic candidate.
- 1936 George William Norris progressive Republican United States Senator from Nebraska left the Republican Party to become an independent and was reelected to the Senate once more, but was defeated in 1942 by a Republican in a race which also involved a Democrat.
- 1937 or 1938 - Vito Marcantonio, a liberal Republican congressman from New York left the party after being defeated for reelection, and joined the American Labor Party. He was then reelected to Congress.
- 1952 - Wayne Morse, while U.S. senator from Oregon. He then switched from independent to Democrat in 1956.
- 1972 - Roger MacBride, went from Republican to Libertarian and back to Republican
- 1988 - Ron Paul, a former Republican congressman, ran for President as a Libertarian. He later returned to Congress as a Republican.
- 1990 - Walter Hickel, before his successful bid for Governor of Alaska, switched to the Alaskan Independence Party. He rejoined the Republican party in 1994.
- 1990 - Lowell P. Weicker, before running for governor of Connecticut
- 1999 Pat Buchanan right-ing commentator who attempted to secure the 1996 Republican presidential nomination, left the Republican Party and gathered his supporters to take over the Reform Party, for which he ran unsuccessfully for president in 2000.
- 1999 Robert C. Smith United States Senator from New Hampshire known as the most conservative person in the Senate, left the Republican Party to become an independent but rejoined the Republican Party a few months later.
- 2001 - James M. Jeffords, while U.S. senator from Vermont. This move changed the balance of power in the Senate from 50-50, with Republican Vice President Richard B. Cheney casting the tie-breaking vote and thus providing a "51" majority, to 50-49-1, giving the Democrats majority control of the Senate until it was lost after the 2002 midterm elections.
Other
There have been several instances of politicians continuing to be a member of a political party while running other campaigns as an independent. The most prominent examples include southern Democratic segregationists Strom Thurmond in 1948 and George Wallace in 1968, who remained in the Democratic Party for statewide campaigns but mounted national presidential campaigns as independents. Wallace later ran in the 1972 Democratic primaries. Earlier, liberal Republican Robert La Follette, Sr. ran for President as the candidate of the Progressive Party in 1924, while still remaining a Republican in the Senate.
Other political figures, such as Miller and Koch in the previous section, do not formally leave their parties, but support a candidate from another party. This received much media attention in 2004, when Democrats for Bush and Republicans for Kerry groups were formed.
Party switching in other countries
Party switching is also quite common in countries other than the United States. In many countries, it takes the form of politicians refusing to support their political parties in coalition governments. This is particularly common in countries with less established political parties, such as Vanuatu and French Polynesia where in 2004, a few members of various parties left the coalition, forcing it to collapse. As in the United States, new parties are often formed by party switches, such as in the United Kingdom, where some liberals moved to the Labour Party in the early twentieth century. In formerly communist countries in Europe, many communists switch to other parties ranging on the political spectrum from socialist to conservative.
Notable switches in Canada
See also
External links
- http://edition.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/05/23/switchers.list - A list of party switchers (compiled in 2001)
- http://www.cookpolitical.com/column/1999/072099.php - An overview of party switching in recent years.
- http://archives.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/05/23/party.switchers/ - "Party switching comes with political risks"
