The Paradox of Partisanship: Essential for Politics Yet Potentially Toxic

Partisan conflict is a healthy and necessary aspect of democracy because one-party politics is not democracy: It’s totalitarianism. Competition gives parties incentives to respond to voters; losing parties keep winning parties accountable; and parties mobilize and engage citizens to win elections, binding disparate citizens together in a common purpose. But with the good, comes the bad: To unite people, parties must also divide, by offering a common enemy to everyone on their side. Here’s the paradox: We can’t have democracy without partisanship. But when partisanship overwhelms everything, it becomes increasingly difficult for democracy to function.

Join (via Skype) Lee Drutman, senior fellow in the political reform program at New America to discuss this political catch-22.