I.

Introduction

Political Machines, local political party organization capable of mobilizing or “manufacturing” large numbers of votes on behalf of candidates for political office. Political machines developed in the United States in the early 19th century, reached the peak of their power toward the end of the century, and declined in importance after 1900. Political party machines dominated political life in most American cities in the decades between the Civil War (1861-1865) and the Great Depression (1930s). In some areas, political machines, such as Chicago's Democratic Party organization, continued to be important into the 1970s. Today, traditional political machines are virtually extinct in the United States.

Strong political party organizations, such as Germany's Social Democratic Party, also developed in Europe during the latter half of the 19th century. European governments tended to be centralized, however, in contrast to America's federal structure, which disperses power between national, state, and local levels of government. For this reason, political parties in Europe were generally more powerful at the national rather than the local level. Today, most European nations continue to possess vigorous party organizations that have strong ties to their members. By contrast, American political parties have weakened as their organizational structures have decayed at the local level and with that their capacity to mobilize and activate voters.