How the U.S. Developed Into a Two-Party System

  • Federalists and Anti-Federalists

    The federalist and anti-federalist parties started at the Constitutional Convention.
  • Democratic-Republican Party

    This party was started by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison to oppose the federalist party.
  • The Modern Democratic Party

    This party was founded in the '20s by Andrew Jackson.
  • Jacksonian Democrats

    This democracy expanded suffrage to most white men over 21.
  • The Modern Republican Party

    This party was founded in the 1850s.
  • The Party of Lincoln

    This, also known as the National Union Party or Republican Party, was created when Abraham Lincoln was running for reelection.