Examine the ways in which party systems in the UK and the USA differ.
The main difference between in party system between UK and USA is that US is a two-party system
while UK is a multi-party system. The party system in US is dominated by the Democratic Party and the
Republican Party, who have won every presidential election since 1852. In the seven presidential
elections between 1992 and 2016, the Democrats and Republicans accounted for more than 80% of the
popular vote on every occasion. Both the House of Representative and Senate is dominated by the two
main parties, where due to the FPTP electoral system in which third parties attract very small
proportions of the vote and rarely win office at any level of government. Whereas in the UK there is
evidence of multi-party system, after 2005 election Liberal Democrats had 62 MPs and after the 2015
general election, SNP had 56 MPs in the House of Commons. Following the 2015 election, the combined
conservative and Labour vote was just 67% and there were 11 parties represented in the House of
Commons. The devolved nature in the UK creates for a multi-party system where there are nationalists’
parties from Scotland the SNP and DUP from Northern Ireland are amongst the parties in the House of
Commons.
Moreover, the US and UK party system differ due to the changing culture in UK which have not taken
place in USA. The introduction of devolution from 1997 Labour government, enabled the formation of
nationalist’s parties such as the SNP, Plaid Cymru and unionists party such as DUP and Sinn Fine to have
seats in the Houses of Commons. This lead to the change in the structure of UK, ending direct rule of
Northern Ireland, creating the Welsh Assembly and Scottish Parliament. In USA, there is no change in
structure or the culture, differing the US party system to the UK. In Washington, the party system works
under a structure that allows one party to control the presidency while at the same time the other
controls Congress. In the UK, there is divide between government and opposition which is absent in the
US. The party system in the USA is the nature of the presidency, which can be won only by parties that
enjoy broad, national support, differing to UK’s system where the focus is on the party which has the
most seats in the House of Commons to be the government and the prime minister to be chosen by the
party.
The difference in party system between UK and USA allows political parties to be responsible for funding
campaigns in the UK, whereas US candidates are largely responsible for their own fundraising. US
politicians are allowed to donate to each other’s’ campaigns, where members of Congress are able to
have influence over other members by contributing to re-election campaigns. This is perhaps due to the
UK, where it seems to be that the national party which does not consist solely of elected officials seems
to control the selection of local and Parliamentary candidates. But in the US, a party’s candidates tend to
be chosen by primary elections which are run through the same formal election process as the general
election as US elections are run at the state or local level. Election procedures are not standardised on a
nationwide basis like they are in the UK.
The main difference between in party system between UK and USA is that US is a two-party system
while UK is a multi-party system. The party system in US is dominated by the Democratic Party and the
Republican Party, who have won every presidential election since 1852. In the seven presidential
elections between 1992 and 2016, the Democrats and Republicans accounted for more than 80% of the
popular vote on every occasion. Both the House of Representative and Senate is dominated by the two
main parties, where due to the FPTP electoral system in which third parties attract very small
proportions of the vote and rarely win office at any level of government. Whereas in the UK there is
evidence of multi-party system, after 2005 election Liberal Democrats had 62 MPs and after the 2015
general election, SNP had 56 MPs in the House of Commons. Following the 2015 election, the combined
conservative and Labour vote was just 67% and there were 11 parties represented in the House of
Commons. The devolved nature in the UK creates for a multi-party system where there are nationalists’
parties from Scotland the SNP and DUP from Northern Ireland are amongst the parties in the House of
Commons.
Moreover, the US and UK party system differ due to the changing culture in UK which have not taken
place in USA. The introduction of devolution from 1997 Labour government, enabled the formation of
nationalist’s parties such as the SNP, Plaid Cymru and unionists party such as DUP and Sinn Fine to have
seats in the Houses of Commons. This lead to the change in the structure of UK, ending direct rule of
Northern Ireland, creating the Welsh Assembly and Scottish Parliament. In USA, there is no change in
structure or the culture, differing the US party system to the UK. In Washington, the party system works
under a structure that allows one party to control the presidency while at the same time the other
controls Congress. In the UK, there is divide between government and opposition which is absent in the
US. The party system in the USA is the nature of the presidency, which can be won only by parties that
enjoy broad, national support, differing to UK’s system where the focus is on the party which has the
most seats in the House of Commons to be the government and the prime minister to be chosen by the
party.
The difference in party system between UK and USA allows political parties to be responsible for funding
campaigns in the UK, whereas US candidates are largely responsible for their own fundraising. US
politicians are allowed to donate to each other’s’ campaigns, where members of Congress are able to
have influence over other members by contributing to re-election campaigns. This is perhaps due to the
UK, where it seems to be that the national party which does not consist solely of elected officials seems
to control the selection of local and Parliamentary candidates. But in the US, a party’s candidates tend to
be chosen by primary elections which are run through the same formal election process as the general
election as US elections are run at the state or local level. Election procedures are not standardised on a
nationwide basis like they are in the UK.
