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A two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate politics within a government. One of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually referred to as the ''majority party'' while the other is the ''minority party''. The term has different senses. For example, in the United States, Jamaica, and Malta, the sense of ''two party system'' describes an arrangement in which all or nearly all elected officials only belong to one of the two major parties, and third parties rarely win any seats in the legislature. In such arrangements, two-party systems are thought to result from various factors like winner takes all election rules.〔〔Wong Chin Huat, fz.com, Jul 29, 2013, (When winner takes all ), Accessed Aug 12, 2013, “...This "winner-takes-all" characteristic of political contestation then forces political groups to consolidate into two blocs, hence, the two-party system...”〕〔Regis Publishing, (The US System: Winner Takes All ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...Winner-take-all rules trigger a cycle that leads to and strengthens a system of few (two in the US) political parties...”〕〔The Two Party System, Boundless Publishing, ( Two-party systems are prominent in various countries, such as the U.S., and contain both advantages and disadvantages ), Accessed August 12, 2013 “...There are two main reasons winner–takes–all systems lead to a two-party system...”,〕〔Eric Black, Minnpost, October 8, 2012, (Why the same two parties dominate our two-party system ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...SMDP (single-member districts, plurality) voting system. ... This forces those who might favor a minor party candidate to either vote for whichever of the two biggest parties the voter dislikes the least, or to risk the likelihood that their vote will be “wasted” or, worse, that they will end up helping the major-party candidate whom the voter dislikes the most to win. Minor parties aren’t banned, but they seldom produce a plurality winner, and their lack of success often causes the minor parties to wither and die....”〕〔History Learning Site, (Why America is a two-party state ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...The American electoral system – winner-takes-all – guarantees that any third, fourth party etc has no chance of winning....”〕 In such systems, while chances for third party candidates winning election to major national office are remote, it is possible for groups within the larger parties, or in opposition to one or both of them, to exert influence on the two major parties.〔Patrick Bashan, CATO Institute, June 9, 2004, (Do Electoral Systems Affect Government Size? ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...The current system has many disadvantages, most notably its propensity to discriminate against minor parties operating outside the increasingly uncompetitive, cozy two-party system.... America’s winner-takes-all electoral system may be the least bad option for those seeking to limit government involvement in the nation’s economic life....”〕〔George F. Will, October 12, 2006, Washington Post, (From Schwarzenegger, a Veto for Voters' Good ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...That electoral vote system (combined with the winner-take-all allocation of votes in all states but Maine and Nebraska) makes it very difficult for third-party presidential candidates to be competitive...”〕〔Ashley Ford, Sept. 17, 2012, Cavalier Daily, (Party of three: A third political party is an important aspect of the Virginia democratic process ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...The two party system forces the third party to join their group in a winner take all system...”〕〔Two Party System, PBS, (Two-Party System ), Accessed Aug. 12, 2013, “...Third-party or independent candidates face a slew of obstacles in American politics, from limited media coverage to legal barriers and Congressional leadership rules. Laws regarding third-party candidates also vary from state to state, presenting additional difficulties....”〕〔〔Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake, May 18, 2012, The Washington Post, (Americans Elect and the death of the third party movement ), Accessed Aug 11, 2013〕 In contrast, in the United Kingdom and in other parliamentary systems and elsewhere, the term ''two-party system'' is sometimes used to indicate an arrangement in which two major parties dominate elections but in which there are viable third parties which do win seats in the legislature, and in which the two major parties exert proportionately greater influence than their percentage of votes would suggest. ==Examples== An agreement that the United States has a two-party system; historically, there have been few instances in which third party candidates won an election. In the First Party System, only the Federalist Party and Thomas Jefferson's Democratic-Republican Party were significant political parties. Toward the end of the First Party System, the Republicans held a single-party system (primarily under the Presidency of James Monroe). Under the Second Party System, the Democratic-Republican Party split during the election of 1824 into Adams' Men and Jackson's Men. In 1828, the modern Democratic Party (The Democratic Party's symbol is the Donkey) formed in support of Andrew Jackson. The National Republicans were formed in support of John Quincy Adams. After the National Republicans collapsed, the Whig Party and the Free Soil Party quickly formed and collapsed. In 1854, the modern Republican Party (The Republican Party's symbol is the Elephant) formed from a loose coalition of former Whigs, Free Soldiers and other anti-slavery activists. During the Third Party System, the Republican Party was the dominant political faction, but the Democrats held a strong, loyal coalition in the Solid South. During the Fourth Party System, the Republicans remained the dominant Presidential party, although Democrats Grover Cleveland and Woodrow Wilson were both elected to two terms. In 1932, at the onset of the Fifth Party System, Democrats took firm control of national politics with the landslide victories of Franklin D. Roosevelt in four consecutive elections. Other than the two terms of Republican Dwight Eisenhower from 1953 to 1961, Democrats retained firm control of the Presidency until the mid-1960s. Since the mid-1960s, despite a number of land slides (such as Ronald Reagan carrying 49 states and 58% of the popular vote over Walter Mondale in 1984), Presidential elections have been competitive between the predominant Republican and Democratic parties and no one party has been able to hold the Presidency for more than three consecutive terms. In the election of 2012, only 4% separated the popular vote between Barack Obama (51%) and Mitt Romney (47%), although Obama won the electoral vote by a landslide (332-206). Throughout every American party system, no third party has won a Presidential election or majorities in either house of Congress. Despite that, third parties and third party candidates have gained traction and support. In the election of 1912, Theodore Roosevelt won 27% of the popular vote and 88 electoral votes running as a Progressive. In the 1992 Presidential election, Ross Perot won 19% of the popular vote but no electoral votes running as an Independent. In countries such as Britain and Spain, two major parties emerge which have strong influence and tend to elect most of the candidates, but a multitude of lesser parties exist with varying degrees of influence, and sometimes these lesser parties are able to elect officials who participate in the legislature. A report in the ''Christian Science Monitor'', for example, suggested that Spain was moving towards a "greater two-party system" while acknowledging that Spain has "many small parties." In political systems based on the Westminster system, which is a particular style of parliamentary democracy based on the British model and found in many commonwealth countries, a majority party will form the government and the minority party will form the opposition, and coalitions of lesser parties are possible; in the rare circumstance in which neither party is the majority, a hung parliament arises. Sometimes these systems are described as ''two-party systems'' but they are usually referred to as ''multi-party'' systems. There is not always a sharp boundary between a two-party system and a multi-party system. Generally, a two-party system becomes a dichotomous division of the political spectrum with an ostensibly right-wing and left-wing party: the Nationalist Party vs. the Labour Party in Malta, Liberal vs. Labor in Australia, Republicans vs. Democrats in the United States and the Conservative Party vs. the Labour Party in the United Kingdom. Other parties in these countries may have seen candidates elected to local or subnational office, however. Historian John Hicks claims that the United States has never possessed for any considerable period of time the two party system in its pure and undefiled form. In some governments, certain chambers may resemble a two-party system and others a multi-party system. For example, the politics of Australia are largely two-party (if the Liberal Party and National Party are considered the same party at a national level due to their long-standing alliance) for the Australian House of Representatives, which is elected by Instant Runoff Voting, known within Australia as preferential voting. However, third parties are more common in the Australian Senate, which uses a proportional voting system more amenable to minor parties. India too is showing characteristics of two party system with United Progressive Alliance (UPA)〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://electionaffairs.com/parties/UPA.html )〕 and National Democratic Alliance (NDA)〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://electionaffairs.com/parties/NDA.html )〕 as the two main players. It is to be noted that both UPA and NDA are not two political parties but alliances of several smaller parties. Other smaller parties not aligned with either NDA or UPA exist,〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://electionaffairs.com/parties/parties.html )〕 and overall command about 20% of the 2009 seats in the Lok Sabha. Malta are somewhat unusual in that while the electoral system is single transferable vote (STV), traditionally associated with proportional representation, minor parties have not earned much success. No third parties won any seats in the Parliament in Malta's most recent election, for example. The Labour Party and the Nationalist Party are the dominant parties. South Korea has a multi-party system〔The New York Times, August 21, 2006, (Post-Koizumi, dream of a two-party system ), Accessed Oct. 18, 2013, quote: “...This is positive. A two-party system isn't here yet, but it's a kind of dream we have...”〕 that has sometimes been described as having characteristics of a two-party system. Historically, Brazil had a two-party system during its military dictatorship (1964–1985). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Two-party system」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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