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Newspaper announcement of the Democratic Antimasonic nomination of William Wirt.
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The Birth of the U.S. Political Convention in 1831

A radical third party had a new idea for selecting a presidential candidate, and it’s still in use today.
Two men fighting during Shay's Rebellion.
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Fights Over American Democracy Reach Back to the Founding Era

In early America, the soaring ideals behind establishing a new democracy were marked by cycles of progress and backlash.
Members of the National Woman's Party prepare to lobby their senators and congressmen to vote for the Equal Rights Amendment, ca. 1923.

Equal Rights Amendment Was Introduced 100 Years Ago — and Still Waits

America’s feminists felt confident when the Equal Rights Amendment was put before Congress 100 years ago this week. For a century, it’s failed to be enacted.
A collage of Meir Kahane, a pistol, and the outline of Israel and Palestine on a yellow background.

The American Origins of Israel’s Armament Campaign

How Kahanism infiltrated the political mainstream.
Kaiser Wilhelm II and his generals during World War I.

The Rise and Fall of the Project State

Rethinking the twentieth century.
Hubert Humphrey addresses the Democratic National Convention in July 1948.

The Speech That Turned Democrats on Civil Rights and Lost Them the South

The president didn’t want to go too far on civil rights in 1948, fearing it would cost him reelection. But an obscure mayor changed the race — and his party.
An illustration of William Morgan's abduction.

The Masonic Murder That Inspired the First Third Party in American Politics

Public outcry over whistleblower William Morgan's disappearance gave rise to the Anti-Masonic Party, which nominated a candidate for president in 1832.
Five generations of a family pose at the plantation where they were enslaved, soon after Union forces arrived in Beaufort, South Carolina, 1863.

More Than 100 U.S. Political Elites Have Family Links to Slavery

Among America's political elite, 5 living presidents, 2 Supreme Court justices, 11 governors, and 100 legislators have ancestors who enslaved Black people.
Shredded "Don't Tread On Me" flag.

The Long Afterlife of Libertarianism

As a movement, it has imploded. As a credo, it’s here to stay.
Table of election returns printed in newspaper in 1796.

Collusion, Theft, Violence, and Lies: Lurid Tales of American Elections

1796, the first contested presidential election.
Black and white photo of Eugene V. Debs addressing a crowd at the Hippodrome Theatre, New York City.

Socialists on the Knife-Edge

American Democratic Socialism has deep roots in the very “American” values it is accused of undermining.
Ron DeSantis at podium at CPAC.
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Instead of Boosting Democracy, Primary Elections Are Undermining It

Why our politics are growing ever more extreme — and democracy itself is under siege.
Students crowded around General Logan Monument during the 1968 National Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois.

Are We Still Fighting the Battles of the New Left?

Revisiting post-war activist movements around the world to understand generational conflicts in the left.
Protest sign reading "We never left Jim Crow."

Voter Fraud Propagandists Are Recycling Jim Crow Rhetoric

The conservative plot to suppress the Black vote has relied on racist caricatures, then and now.
African American man casting a ballot following the Fifteenth Amendment.

Echoes of 1891 in 2022

Using the congressional filibuster to prevent voting rights legislation isn't new. It has roots in the 19th century.
Black and white photograph of Mark Twain

Mark Twain in Buffalo

Mark Twain would be hopelessly out of favor with both wings of the modern duopoly.
Sketch of the ‘Rising Sun’ design carved in the armchair used by George Washington during the 1787 Constitutional Convention.

A Rising or Setting Sun

A review of how Dennis Rasmussen understands America's Founding Fathers and their disillusions with the American experiment.
Harold Washington on a button

Primary Sources are a Vibe

Historian Melanie Newport turns to eBay.
Luther Martin
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For Constitution Day, Let's Toast the Losers of the Convention

Anti-federalist Luther Martin's agenda failed at the Constitutional Convention, but his criticisms of the Founders may still resonate with us today.
Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill meeting on shipboard in 1941 with officers in the background.

Revisiting Roosevelt and Churchill's 'Atlantic Charter'

Can the partnership born on a maritime U.S.-U.K. summit still protect democracy?
Tucker Carlson wearing a t-shirt with a photograph of Abraham Lincoln on it.

The Right May Be Giving Up the “Lost Cause,” but What’s Next Could Be Worse

The GOP’s new embrace of Lincoln, emancipation, and Juneteenth is no sign of progress.
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.).
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House Republicans’ Leadership Fight Signals a New Direction

Leadership battles tell us a lot about where a party is headed.

The Inner Life of American Communism

Vivian Gornick’s and Jodi Dean’s books mine a lost history of comradeship, determination, and intimacy.
Program for the National American Woman Suffrage Association procession in Washington, DC, 1913, featuring a woman on a horse heralding votes for women and leading marchers toward the capitol.

The Thorny Road to the 19th Amendment

A new book chronicles the twists and turns of the 75-year-path to securing the vote for women.

Great American Radicals: How Would Dorothy Day Vote in 2020?

A biographer of Day talks about what we can learn from the iconic activist.
Painting of George Washington on his death bed, surrounded by family and friends.

The Myth of George Washington’s Post-Presidency

When Washington left the presidency, he didn’t really leave politics at all.
Photograph of Michael Lind wearing a blazer and tie.

Michael Lind on Reviving Democracy

To fix things, we must acknowledge the nature of the problem.
Host Jack Barry and two contestants on the game show "21."

Think Presidential Debates Are Dull? Thank 1950s TV Game Shows

The only debate arrangement that everyone could agree to 60 years ago remains in place today – the game show format.
Traffic signs pointing left and right, blurred as if they were spinning.

“Populism” and the Significance of Left and Right

In the United States, the Populist tradition has always defined left-wing and egalitarian politics, unfairly maligned by bosses and intellectuals alike.
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The Constitutional Revolution a Century Ago That Is Shaping the 2020 Election

And why we need another one.

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