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Article: SPEAK OUT; Accountability would aid the parties
- Article from:
- The Patriot Ledger Quincy, MA
- Article date:
- June 7, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2003 The Patriot Ledger Quincy, MA. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Eric Weltman and Paul Lachelier
Political parties are declining, both in numbers and influence.
Parties do, however, have the potential to be more than fund-raising
machines and identification labels for office-seeking individuals.
They can provide a distinctive vision of the "good society," and hold
their candidates accountable to the policies that achieve these
visions. They can also be institutions of democracy, making politics
a more meaningful part of ordinary people's everyday lives. More
Americans are eschewing parties and registering as "independents." In
Massachusetts, 49.4 percent of registered voters are unaffiliated