Democratic Party (United States)

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Democratic Party
AbbreviationDNC
ChairpersonTom Perez (NY)
SecretaryJason Rae (WI)
Speaker of the HouseNancy Pelosi (CA)
Senate leaderMinority Leader
Chuck Schumer (NY)
House leaderMajority Leader
Steny Hoyer (MD)
FounderThomas Jefferson
James Madison
Andrew Jackson
Martin Van Buren
FoundedJanuary 8, 1828; 192 years ago (January 8, 1828)
Headquarters430 South Capitol St. SE, Washington, D.C., 20003
Student wingCollege Democrats of America
High School Democrats
Women's wingNational Federation of Democratic Woman
IdeologyMajority:
Social democracy
Social liberalism
Progressivism
Democratic socialism
Populism
Website
www.democrats.org

The United States Democratic Party is one of the two biggest political parties in the United States of America. The other is the Republican Party. The U.S. also has several smaller political parties known as third parties. Supporters of this party are known as Democrats.

Every four years the party holds a National Convention where they agree on their candidate for President. The Democratic National Committee coordinates most of the activities of the Democratic Party in all 50 United States. There have been 14 Democratic presidents, the most recent being Barack Obama, who was President from 2009 to 2017. The Democratic Party represents a broad spectrum of leftist ideologies, including classic liberalism, social democracy, progressivism, and socialism.

Philosophy and role in government[change | change source]

Democrats, also sometimes called 'the left', 'liberals' or 'progressives' make up one of the two main political parties in the United States. A mostly Democratic state is sometimes called a 'blue state'. This comes from the party’s main color, which is blue, referring to a state supporting ‘blue’ candidates.

Democrats believe in a strong government with social assistance programs to help members of society. They prefer diplomatic solutions to conflicts, and take a generally protectionist view on trade, believing that trade must be regulated to protect American workers.

Socially, most Democrats believe in social liberalism, taking pro-immigration, pro-gay marriage, and pro-choice views.[1][2][3][4]

Current Democratic beliefs[change | change source]

Generally, Democrats support:

  • Progressive income tax
  • Higher corporate taxes and recapturing income from overseas profits
  • Spending on business, education, infrastructure, clean-energy
  • Expanding spending on government programs
  • Expanding rights to Abortion
  • Restrictions of weapons use and potentially dangerous users through government oversight
  • Universal healthcare

Most support for Democrats comes from states in the Northeast, Upper Midwest, and the Pacific Coast, as well as from the state of Hawaii.

Symbols[change | change source]

The symbol of the Democratic Party is the Donkey.[5] Since the election of 2000, the color blue has become a symbol for Democrats.[6]

President Thomas Jefferson

Historically, Thomas Jefferson, whom the party claims as it founder, has been often seen as symbols of the Democratic Party, particularly emphasized in the annual celebrations of Jefferson Day Dinners held since the days of Andrew Jackson. As such, the Democratic Party is also often referred to as the “Party of Jefferson.”[7]

Democratic U.S. Presidents[change | change source]

President Andrew Jackson
Presidents during the 19th century
President Franklin Roosevelt
Presidents during the 20th century
President Barack Obama
Presidents during the 21st century

Other famous Democratic Politicians[change | change source]

Vice President Joe Biden
Former senator Daniel Inouye
Senator Bernie Sanders
Bill de Blasio, the 109th and current Mayor of New York City

Independents who caucus with Democrats[change | change source]

Former Democrats[change | change source]

Republican Ronald Reagan was once a Democrat

Related pages[change | change source]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ Paul Starr. "Center-Left Liberalism". Princeton University. Archived from the original on March 3, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  2. ↑ Frumin, Aliyah (November 25, 2013). "Obama: 'Long past time' for immigration reform". MSNBC.com. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Changing Views on Social Issues" (PDF). April 30, 2009. Retrieved May 14, 2009.
  4. ↑ "Pew Research Center. (May 10, 2005). Beyond Red vs. Blue, p. 1 of 8". May 10, 2005. Archived from the original on July 8, 2012. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
  5. ↑ see "History of the Democratic Donkey"
  6. ↑ Farhi, Paul (November 2, 2004). "Elephants Are Red, Donkeys Are Blue". Washington Post. p. C01. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  7. ↑ Trotter, Bill (February 11, 2008). "Obama sets sights on November battle". Bangor Daily News. Archived from the original on February 28, 2008. Retrieved February 12, 2008.
  8. ↑ Tom Murse (July 20, 2019). "Was Donald Trump a Democrat?". ThoughtCo. Retrieved September 13, 2019.

Other websites[change | change source]

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