User:Mansand30000/sandbox
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Republican Party, commonly referred to as the GOP (abbreviation for Grand Old Party), is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, the other being the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery activists in 1854, the GOP dominated politics nationally and in most of the North for most of the period from 1860 to 1932. There have been 18 Republican presidents, the first being Abraham Lincoln, who served from 1861 until his assassination in 1865, and the most recent being George W. Bush, who served two full four-year terms 2001 to 2009. The most recent Republican presidential nominee was former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney.
Republican Party | |
---|---|
Chairman | Reince Priebus (WI) |
House leader | John Boehner (Speaker) (OH) |
Senate leader | Mitch McConnell (Majority Leader) (KY) |
Chair of Governors Association | Chris Christie (NJ)[1] |
Founded | March 20, 1854; 170 years ago (1854-03-20) |
Preceded by | Whig Party Free Soil Party |
Headquarters | 310 First Street SE Washington, D.C. 20003 |
Student wing | College Republicans |
Youth wing | Young Republicans Teen Age Republicans |
Membership (2013) | 30,593,698[2] |
Ideology | Conservatism[3] Economic liberalism[4] Social conservatism[5] |
International affiliation | International Democrat Union |
Colors | Red |
Seats in the Senate | 53 / 100
|
Seats in the House | 244 / 435
|
Governorships | 29 / 50
|
State Upper House Seats | 1,034 / 1,972
|
State Lower House Seats | 2,802 / 5,411
|
Website | |
www | |
The party's platform is generally based upon American conservatism,[6][7][8] in contrast to the contemporary American liberalism of the rival Democratic Party. The Republican Party's conservatism involves supporting free market capitalism, opposing regulation and labor unions, and supporting socially conservative policies.[3] The party is generally split on the issue of how to deal with illegal immigration.[9]
In the 114th Congress, the Republicans will have their largest majority in the House since the 1928 election; the GOP will also gain control of the Senate.[10] The party holds a majority of governorships and state legislatures.[11]