Since the mid-1850's, the Democrats and Republicans have dominated the American political scene. As pervasive as it has become, however, the two-party system is not an inherent part of the federal ...

Republican leader Thomas Jefferson won election to the presidency in 1800. This Republican party, which would hold power until 1825, is the direct ancestor of today's Democratic Party.

The Whig Party was active in the U.S. in the mid-1800s. The group was formally organized ... but the party was mostly dissolved just 20 years later. The Republican Party was established in the ...