The Democratic-Republican Party: The Development Of America's Two-Party Political System

The development of a two-party political system manifested by 1795 between the Democratic-Republican Party and the Federalists (Schultz, 2009). Obviously, each party viewed itself as America’s revolutionary ideologist and perceived their opponent’s views as illegitimate. The Democratic- Republican Party, also known as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republicans, preferred a limited government. This party united with one another against Hamilton’s economic policies and Jay’s Treaty. They were against boosting the power of the federal government. However, while the republicans supported self-rule, they also endorsed the ownership of slaves. This is an obvious contradiction as demonstrated by the republicans wanted the federal government to lack authority over them; however, they approved the continuation of slavery. The majority of the supporters were southern landholders and laborers everywhere. Meanwhile, the Federalist Party supported Hamilton’s economic policies and Jay’s Treaty (Schultz, 2009). Their ideal was the central government created a

Ironically, most of the Federalists were not abolitionists, but their stance on continued slavery was much less than that of the Democratic-Republican Party. As demonstrated in the Haitian Revolution. In 1791, a group of slaves in Santo Domingo, Haiti revolted, killed planters, and burned plantations they were bound to. The American Federalists supported this revolution because of their history. Therefore, George Washington continued trade encounters with the Haitian community. However, the Democratic-Republicans disagreed with Washington’s actions. The Haitian Revolution resulted in a further division between the parties. First, southern lawmakers tightened black codes, citing fear of slave rebellions. Second, the South decisively maintained the necessity of slavery. Lastly, it ultimately led to the Louisiana