Pressure groups and political parties

                Both pressure groups and political parties play an important role within the political process. As one might anticipate, there are differences and similarities between the two. Beginning with the differences, a pressure group does not stand for elected office. However, some political parties might be described as glorified pressure groups. This does not mean that they are pressure groups in the technical sense of the term. It does however mean that third party candidates and independents exercise a degree of influence within the political process that might be compared to that of a pressure group. This alludes to the ‘sting and die’ phenomenon in which the momentum behind third parties / independents quickly disappears. The barriers facing a third party or independent candidate are such that they, in effect; simply exert pressure upon candidates from the two main parties. It might also be argued that a pressure group might confusingly be labeled as a political party. For instance, the Tea Party movement is a pressure group ideologically aligned to fiscal conservatives within the GOP.

                Another important distinction between the two is that no system could operate without a political party or parties, but a political system could conceivably operate without pressure groups. Dictatorial regimes have operated without pressure groups, but all regimes have required a political party of some description. As the US is a liberal democracy, this argument is somewhat redundant. The third key distinction to be aware of is that pressure groups arguably hold more importance as agents of political change and representation. Political parties are relatively weak within the states, which inevitably leaves something of a political vacuum that pressure groups ultimately serve to fill. America does not facilitate strong political parties, but pressure groups (particular insiders) can play a key role in terms of securing change and representation.

                The similarities between pressure groups and political parties should be fairly obvious. To begin with, there are a number of roles that both organizations perform. Political parties and pressure groups seek to educate the public about political matters. A party might publish a platform during an election, whereas a cause group will highlight a particular issue. Secondly, both pressure groups and political parties enable the demos to actively participate in the political process. Many people’s initial engagement with the political process is via pressure groups rather than parties. That said; both enable citizens to make a contribution to the democratic process. Thirdly, pressure groups and parties represent the public within the political process. Pressure groups achieve this via an indirect manner, whereas political parties offer a more direct route.