Political Parties in the United States .
Today the United States has two major political parties: the Democratic Party, which has evolved out of Thomas Jefferson's party formed before 1792, and the Republican Party formed in the 1854 mostly by people in the states of the North and West who wanted to prevent the expansion of slavery into new states being admitted to the union at that period. Both parties are supported by individuals and groups in all parts of the country and their members hold almost all the offices in national, state, and local governments. .
It is difficult to generalize about the two parties as they have no distinct ideological program, there are no membership fees, and both cover a wide spectrum of interests. Both parties are moderate and close to the political centre, but the Republicans are to the right and the Democrats to the left of centre. Both have supporters among a wide variety of Americans, and both embrace a wide range of viewpoints. There is so much variety that not all who belong to the same party agree with each other on everything. There are conservative Democrats who agree with many Republican ideas; and liberal Republicans who agree with some Democratic ideas. Very frequently there are Democrats and Republicans who do not vote in the way their party leaders would prefer. They vote according to their own ideas or the wishes of the people they represent, not the views of the party. .
The Democratic Party .
The Democratic Party traditionally tends to be more liberal. Democratic Presidents have included Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D Roosevelt, Harry S Truman, John F Kennedy, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. Democrats believe that federal and State governments should. Be more active in providing social and economic programs for the poor, the unemployed, and students who need money to go to college. Set up government programs providing paid employment for people.