The role of the parties

Party organizations are less important in the US than in countries like Britain which have a parliament. This is partly because, due to the separation of powers between the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government, a political party is not so closely identified with government. In addition, candidates for many offices are chosen by voters in primary elections rather than by the party.

The national organization for each of the main parties is called the National Committee, and its head is the National Chairman. This person is appointed by the party's candidate for President. The head of a US political party is not, as in Britain, the head of the administration (= people running the government at a particular time).

An important job of the national party is to organize the party convention (= meeting), which is held every four years in the summer before the elections for President. The convention decides who will be the party's candidates for President and Vice-President, as well as the platform, the ideas and opinions of the party and the policies it will introduce if it wins the election.

The national parties raise money for election campaigns and provide other kinds of help to their candidates. They may, for example, help them make television advertisements.

In the House of Representatives and the Senate the majority party controls the most powerful committees, the groups that decide what laws are made and how the administration spends its money. Members of Congress are allowed more independence from their parties than British Members of Parliament. They aim to appear loyal firstof all to the people they represent. But to other politicians from their party they want to be seen as loyal party members, so that they will have the chance of sitting on important committees and build up support for any proposals they may introduce.

Americans hope that politicians will devote themselves more to their country than to their own careers. They do not want politicians to appear too partisan (=strongly attached to their party) but to show a bipartisan (=cooperative) spirit and work together for the good of the country.