Grand Valley State University’s Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies hosted a bipartisan panel discussion on Thursday, March 13, titled “Is the Party Over? The Present and Future of American Party Politics.” The event featured political science professors from multiple universities, who assessed both the Republican and Democratic Parties, and America’s current political climate. Many GVSU community members were in attendance, as well as students taking government classes at Wyoming High School.
The Hauenstein Center’s Common Ground Initiative convened the panel, and aimed to discuss leadership challenges facing the major political parties, internal calls for reform and governmental squabbles. After the initial panel, there was a Q&A section from the audience, which gave individual attendees a chance to express their personal concerns.
The panelists included Kevin Portteus, a politics professor and director of American Studies at Hillsdale College, Christina Wolbrecht, a professor at the University of Notre Dame and Donald Zinman, a professor at GVSU. Each panelist was asked a series of questions regarding topics ranging from party representation, takeaways from the 2024 presidential election and the influence of money in elections. The panelists also helped to explain the current state of politics in the United States. Throughout the event, all speakers remarked that American politics are in a state of transition, realignment and polarization on both sides.
“We have a kind of realignment that I don’t think we’ve really seen since the 1930s,” said Portteus. “(It’s) not just about one party or another coming to power, but a fundamental scrambling of coalitions.”
Wolbrecht mentioned the two-party system has consistently gone through historical periods of change, much like American society’s seeing right now.
“Parties are amazingly adaptable,” Wolbrecht stated. “Throughout our history, they have remade themselves, remade their functions (and) how they work in response to changing economic, political and social conditions.”
Zinman highlighted challenges the Democratic Party will have to overcome following its loss in the 2024 presidential election and the right-wing political dominance that has transpired. He explained the party has to find new leadership and redefine its appeals to voters.
“It’s normal for a party that has lost an election across the board to go through these growing pains,” Zinman said. “It can be kind of a painful process, but it has to happen if they’re (the Democratic Party) going to be a winning apathy again.”
Wolbrecht discussed how America’s political shift has put the country into a period of uncertainty, which makes it hard to predict what could happen in future elections. She explained that political scientists explain current trends rather than predict future ones. This confusion and uncertainty can cause voters, especially those of younger generations, to have feelings of anxiety or even anger surrounding politics.
“I think that no matter what the time or place, there are always going be these large forces in the world you can’t control,” Wolbrecht said. “They (political actions) really have a big impact on your life, and (that’s) challenging.”
Her advice for young people navigating this era of uncertainty is to find issues they care about, and become involved in the local community. Wolbrecht mentioned such actions are a way for young voters to “feel like they are making a dent.”
“The people who have the biggest effect are the ones you show up,” Wolbrecht said. “That’s (engaging in politics) the most effective thing you can do.”
