Urban Politics
Political Science 102 E
Urban Politics 107
Week 2
Nazita Lajevardi, Ph.D. Candidate
Office Hours: Wednesdays 9-11 am and by appt
Office Location: SSB 341
Email: [email protected]
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
Today’s Agenda
Cities grew REALLY fast in
the 19th Century
¡  American society was rural and agricultural in the 18th century
¡  19th century brought sweeping changes.
¡  Between 1880 and 1900, cities in the United States grew at a dramatic
rate.
¡  PREVIEW
¡  (1) Many of those who helped account for the population growth
of cities were immigrants arriving from around the world.
¡  (2) A steady stream of people from rural America also migrated to
the cities during this period.
Growth of Cities in 19th Century
¡ In 1840, only three cities – New York, Baltimore, and New
Orleans – had populations exceeding 100,000.
¡  As late as 1850, only 15 percent of the US population was
urban, meaning that only 1 in 10 lived in places with 2,500
residents or more.
¡ By 1920, 68 cities had populations over 100,000.
¡  By 1930, over 56% of the US population was urban.
What caused this unprecedented
growth of cities?
INDUSTRIALIZATION
¡  The key factor was industrialization.
¡  Recall that urban economies prior to the 19th century
revolved around the buying and selling of goods.
¡  During this time, production was on a small scale.
¡  After the 19th century:
¡  Urban growth
The Role of Industrialization
¡  Industrialization went hand in hand with urban growth.
¡  Factory owners preferred to build new plants in cities to take
advantage of rising concentrations of workers and expanding
markets for their goods.
¡  Meanwhile, the explosion in industrialization reinforced urbanization
as:
¡  1. more and more people from the countryside moved there for
jobs
¡  2. more and more people from other nations moved there for jobs.
Feedback Loop of
Industrialization
¡ Technological advances in transportation – i.e. the
development of the railway system – enabled factory
owners to ship their manufactured goods throughout
the country.
¡ The creation of mass markets sparked mass production –
allowing more and more factory workers to be hired.
¡ Railroads supplied city residents with food and vital raw
materials such as coal and lumber, thus allowing for
more urban growth.
The Role of Immigration
Immigration
¡ Immigration was necessary for industrialization and
urbanization during the 19th century.
¡ Industrialists needed workers to operate the booming
factories and so they readily supported a liberal
immigration policy that brought more than 33 million
immigrants to the US from 1820 to 1920.
¡ The impact on cities was enormous.
Immigration’s impact on cities
¡  By 1910, immigrants and their native-born children
constituted over 70% of the populations of
¡  NYC,
¡  Chicago,
¡  Boston,
¡  Buffalo,
¡  Cleveland,
¡  Detroit, and
¡  Milwaukee
¡  Immigration took place in 2 massive waves
¡  From Germany between the 1840s-1850s
¡  From southern and central Europe during the late 19th and
early 20th centuries.
Cities in Disarray with the
Arrival of Immigrants
¡  The massive influx of humanity into cities from the surrounding
countryside and other nations placed a huge strain on urban
infrastructures.
¡  Tens of thousands of new and poor immigrants jammed
together into overcrowded places that lacked adequate
light, ventilation, and heat.
¡  Many cities lacked sewers.
¡  Disease was rampant
¡  Crime had increased: due to the combination of densely
population communities and rising poverty
¡  Schools were overcrowded
Mismatch between city
government and the people of
the time
¡ The kind of city government that had evolved from the
preindustrial era was simply not up to the challenges
imposed by mass urbanization
¡ By the 1870s, most large cities witnessed the rise of a
new political organization that more or less fulfilled the
need for governance and order.
¡ The political machine was essentially a new political
organization featuring a hierarchical structure with the
boss at the top presiding over a vast network of party
workers at multiple levels.
The Political Machine
What is Machine Politics?
A.  Machine politics: manipulation of incentives for
partisan advantage:
1.  Favoritism
2.  A form of clientele politics (clientelism):
3.  The practices of machine politics: attracting
and directing members through particular
incentives:
–  The incentives are financial, psychological, material,
solidarity
–  They are NOT programmatic or ideological
Problems lead to the
political machine
¡ Problem: Cities grow so fast their govʼt (municipal) canʼt
keep up with needs of people
¡ Solution: Political Machine steps in and provides
services in exchange for votes and money
¡ Goal of Pol. Mach: work to get their candidates elected
Failure of City Governments
Machine Politics as a Hierarchical
System
A.  A disciplined hierarchy led by a single
executive
B.  Purpose: capture political office and governing
power (in order to control patronage
resources)
C.  The major lever through which the machine
operates is by controlling:
¡  1.
¡  2.
the nomination of candidates to office
the resources required to compete politically.
Machine Politics as a Hierarchical
System
D.
The organization is cemented by non-ideological & non
policy goals:
¡  1.
¡  2.
E.
material rewards: jobs, contracts, investments.
personal recognition, camaraderie, or ethnic loyalty.
Mexicoʼs political system in the 1980s, a one party system
maintained through the control of jobs, resources, and
through electoral corruption.
Machine Politics: Exchange
Relationship
¡  Machine politics was predicated on an exchange relationship.
¡  Machine politicians sought out votes, particularly from the masses
of poor and working-class immigrants.
¡  This was doable because now they could vote due to the abolition
of all remaining property requirements and speedy naturalization
process.
¡  The Machine also served as a precursor to the modern-day welfare
state, along with fulfilling other societal functions.
¡  City bosses worked out cooperative arrangements with many
businesses.
¡  Machines provided them with govt contracts and franchises and in
exchange these businesses gave politicians financial support and
patronage jobs.
Relevance of the Political
Machine and Urban Conflict
¡ 
A. Resolved conflicts (class and ethnic) during the nineteenth
and much of the twentieth century.
¡ 
B. This is both good and bad.
¡ 
GOOD:
¡ 
Prevent bloodshed (Gangs of New York) and the nation
being ripped apart during a time when the nation was
undergoing massive social and demographic change.
¡ 
BAD:
¡ 
But was a conservative force, that prevented more
aggressive class action for equality and a better standard of
living
Relevance of the Political
Machine and Urban Conflict
¡ 
C. It spanned over a 100 years of our political history
¡ 
D. The current structure of many cities is a response to the
Political Machine (non-partisan elections, at-large
representation).
Widespread Corruption in the
Machine
¡ The most glaring drawback to the machine was the
massive amounts of rampant corruption.
¡ But not all had to be corrupt.
Machine Politics
Political Bosses
¡  Political Machine: well-organized political parties that
dominated city governments in the United States and they
had great success in getting their members elected to
local political offices.
¡  Powerful political bosses managed these machines
¡  Political bosses dictated party positions on city ordinances
and made deals with business leaders
¡  They also controlled the district leaders, city officials, and
council members who kept the machine running smoothly.
Precinct Captains
¡  Precinct captains built relationships with voters living in urban
neighborhoods and was a great strength of political
machines – meet voters face-to-face
¡  By offering jobs, political favors, and services to local
residents, precinct captains won support for the political
machine
¡  At election time, bosses and precinct captains instructed
local residents to vote for selected candidates and they did
The City Boss: Top Man in
the Political Machine
• Got votes & $ for political party in return for
providing services or favors
•  Controlled city jobs, business licenses,
influenced the courts.
Immigrants and the Political
Machines
¡ Constituents (voters) are often immigrants
¡ Bosses and precinct captains often 1st or 2nd
generation immigrants themselves
¡ KEY because:
¡ Knew the language, culture, and what was
needed
¡ Immigrants taken advantage of
Increase in Immigration
¡ 
1. Immigration: 1840 to 1896
¡ 
2. This generated massive strain on the economic & political
institutions.
¡ 
3. New demands and public sector needs of government:
¡ 
¡ 
¡ 
¡ 
a.
b.
c.
d.
Language problems.
Job training.
Massive concentrations of social maladies.
Regulating the competition among the different groups
Immigrants and the Political
Machines
¡ Because political machines helped the urban poor, new
immigrants often became particularly loyal supports of
political machines
¡ Machine politicians usually met immigrants as soon as
they arrived in the United States
¡  They helped newcomers get settled in their new homeland
¡  Tammany Hall:
¡  Sent numerous party workers to Ellis Island to meet new immigrants
¡  Party workers assisted immigrants by finding them temporary
housing and jobs. They also helped immigrants become naturalized
citizens and thus eligible to vote for Tammany Hall candidates
¡  However, Tammany officials failed to offer any extensive programs
to address poverty and poor housing conditions
Immigrants and the Political
Machines
¡  Political bosses ensured voter loyalty among immigrant groups by
providing jobs in exchange for votes
¡  James Pendergast was a particularly well-liked boss in Kansas
City, Missouri
¡  Pendergast gained considerable political support by providing
jobs and special services to African Americans, Irish Americans,
and Italian American voters
Corruption in the Machine
¡ Fraud: cheating to win elections
¡  ex: voting more than once
¡ Graft: using political influence for personal gain
¡  ex: Bribes - businesses offered money to get city
contracts
Tammany Hall
¡  Tammany Hall was a New York City political organization founded in
1786.
¡  It was the Democratic Party political machine that played a major role
in controlling New York City and New York State politics and helping
immigrants, most notably the Irish, rise up in American politics from the
1790s to the 1960s.
¡  It typically controlled Democratic Party nominations and political
patronage in Manhattan from the mayoral victory of Fernando Wood
in 1854.
¡  It used its patronage resources to build a loyal, well-rewarded core of
district and precinct leaders; after 1850 the great majority were Irish
Catholics.
Tammany Hall
¡  After 1854, Tammany Hall expanded its political control even
further by earning the loyalty of the city's rapidly expanding
immigrant community.
¡  This community functioned as its base of political capital.
¡  The business community appreciated its readiness to cut
through red tape and legislative mazes to facilitate rapid
economic growth.
¡  The Tammany Hall ward bosses were the city's smallest
political units from 1786 to 1938 and served as the local vote
gatherer and provider of patronage.
Tammany Hall
¡  By 1872 Tammany had an Irish Catholic "boss."
¡  And in 1928 a Tammany hero, New York Governor Al Smith, won the
Democratic presidential nomination.
¡  However, Tammany Hall also served as an engine for graft and political
corruption.
¡  Most infamously under William M. "Boss" Tweed in the mid-19th century.
¡  By the 1880s, Tammany was building local clubs that appealed to social
activists from the ethnic middle-class.
¡  In quiet times the machine had the advantage of a core of solid
supporters and usually exercised control of politics and policymaking in
Manhattan; it also played a major role in the state legislature in Albany.
Political Cartoonists Raise Alarm
¡ Political Cartoonists = expressed their concern about
the damaging effects of corruption and big money.
¡ Thomas Nast = exposed the illegal activities of William
Marcy “Boss” Tweed.
¡ Boss Tweed was eventually arrested, but escaped and
fled to Spain where he was recognized by one of Nastʼs
cartoons.
The Spoils System OR
Patronage
in the Political Machine
•  The winning party in an election got to hand out these
jobs to their supporters
•  Government jobs were the “spoils”
•  This system is replaced with civil service
The Decline of the Machine
¡ 
By 1890 Political Machines controlled 1/2 the nationʼs 20 largest
cities. (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Philly, Pitt, Cincinnati, SF, St. Louis,
Jersey City, Buffalo, Albany)
¡ 
But this did not last…
Some Reasons for the
Decline
¡ 
A. The end of immigration
¡ 
B. The New deal and the rise of the welfare state?
¡ 
C. Public Education – other sources of information.
¡ 
D. A diminishment of racial and ethnic cohesion
¡ 
E. the machine was seen as a threat to particular classes,
particularly the WASP
Some Reasons for the
Decline
¡ 
F. This led to the hostility and antagonism of the reformist
ethos.
¡ 
G. Civil service reform limited their supply of patronage jobs.
Pendelton Act 1883
¡ 
H. 1950-1985 – cutbacks in the welfare state galvanized blacks
and threatened the remaining machines.
¡ 
I. Middle class voters demanded lower taxes
Patronage Ended through
the Pendelton ACt
¡ The law passed by Congress that brought an end to
patronage (the spoils system) and led to the creation of
the Civil Service Commission was the Pendelton Act
¡ Under the Pendleton Act, people now had to Pass a civil
service exam to qualify for a government job.
¡ (section 3 #ʼs 44-45)
Civil Service Today
¡ a system by which the most qualified people are hired
for govʼt jobs
¡ system based on a candidatesʼ performances on an
examination (& interview?)
Now on to the Readings
What is this piece about?
¡ What is the author’s main point?
William Riorden:
To Hold Your District: Study
Human Nature and Act
Accordin
What is this piece about?
¡ What is the author’s main point?
¡ “I don’t trouble them with political arguments, I just
study human nature.”
¡  Main point:
¡  To learn real human nature you have to go among the
people, see them and be seen.
¡  Knows everyone within the 15th District
¡  Does this work for everyone?
What about the “hightoned” fellas?
¡ Does this work for them?
¡ Why or why not?
¡ How to appeal to them?
¡ What happens when they take their civil service
exams?
What about the old? The
poor?
¡ What works for each of these groups?
Robert Merton:
The Latent Functions of the
Machine
What is this piece about?
¡ What is the author’s main point?
What is this piece about?
¡ To understand the role of bossism and the machine,
must look at 2 types of sociological variables:
¡ 1. the structural context which makes it difficult for
morally approved structures to fulfill essential functions,
leaving the door open for machines
¡ 2. the sub groups whose distinctive needs are left
unsatisfied, except for the latent functions which the
machine in fact fulfills
Structural context
¡ The constitutional framework of the American political
organization specifically precludes the legal possibility of
highly centralized poewr and discourages the growth of
effective and responsible leadership.
¡ The framers set up a checks and balances system to
keep government at a sort of mechanical equipoise by
means of a standing amicable contest among its
several oraganic parts.
Structural context
¡ Whatever its specific historical origins, the political
machine persists as an apparatus for satisfying otherwise
unfulfilled needs of diverse groups in the population.
Functions of the Political Machine
for Diverse Subgroups
¡  One source of strength of the political machine derives from
its roots in the local community and in the neighborhood.
¡  The machine recognizes that the voter is a person living in a
specific neighborhood, with a specific personal problem,
and personal wants.
¡  Public issues are abstract and remote – private problems are
extremely concrete and immediate.
Machine also provides
services to its own personnel
¡ The machine is an organized provision for subgroups
otherwise excluded from or handicapped in the race
for getting ahead.
¡ It operates to help “illegitimate” crime.
Alexander Callow:
That Impudent Autocrat
What is this piece about?
¡ What is the author’s main point?
The Impudent Autocrat:
William Tweed
¡  The most infamous city political machine in our history – the Tweed
Ring of New York City.
¡  The Tweed Ring, like other big city political machines, was a distinct,
peculiar American institution.
¡  It was created by clever men out of conditions indigenous not only
to the city and state but to the nation as well.
¡  A rurally dominate State legislature either ignored the city’s
problems or met them only halfway, partly because it was jealous
of its power and was reluctant to give the city the necessary
authority to deal meaningfully with its growing pains.
¡ The era of the Tweed Ring reflected a transition phase
of NY politics that spelled the end to the long rule of the
middle and upper classes
¡ In this struggle for power, the old middle and upper
classes never really presented any formidable
competition, primarily because they could not adjust to
the political and social changes that were creating for
them a new, strange urban world.
¡ Along with this, there was a kind of moral twilight:
Americans were tired of great causes.
¡  The crusade against slavery before the war
¡  The crusafe to maintain the Union during the war
¡  The Crusade to reconstruct the North and South
¡ Too much for people to bear
¡ Tweed appeared as a fierce leader.
¡ Tweed’s sheer physical bulk awed most men into
respect
¡ Despite his reputation for vulgarity, he numbered friends
in every walk of life.
¡ He even ran for Congress.
¡  Tweed spent two unhappy years in the House of Representatives.
¡  He disliked the formal nature of Washington, particularly the
tradition of merely tolerating first-term Congressmen.
¡  In Washington, he was nothing.
¡  At the end of the 23rd Congress, he did not want to run for
reelection, but when he came back to NY, he found that NY had
changed. (We’ll get into reform politics next week).
¡  He was also broke.
William Tweed
¡ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YildL_ilQFY
Next week:
Kansas City Reform Politics
¡  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7vYYP2NUA8
Jessica Trounstine:
Political Monopolies in
American Cities– The Rise
and Fall of Bosses and
Reformers
Which cities does she
motivate her work with?
Chicago and San Jose
¡  Chicago and San Jose have vast differences.
¡  In recent years San Jose has consistently been ranked
among the safest and wealthiest big cities in America.
¡  Chicago housed millions of immigrants in an economy of
factories and slaughter houses à the very model of the
political machine
¡  But they share one conspicuous trait: a legacy of
extraordinarily long tenure by political leaders.
¡  Richard J. Daley governed Chicago
¡  Anthony “Dutch” Hamann managed San Jose
Chicago and San Jose
¡  In cities more than 2,000 miles apart, Daley and Hamann each came
to office in the early 1950s and went on to preside for a quarter of a
century.
¡  But in the 1970s, the regimes these men guided were eclipsed by rising
political movements.
¡  So, given the differences between machine and reform regimes, why
do these places share political patterns; how could Daley and
Hamann have both governed for multiple decades in cities that were
so different?
¡  The answer lies in the approach to reelection employed by politicians
in both places: they biased the system in favor of incumbents.
Daley and Hamman
¡  Daley and Hamann both led coalitions that pursued and secured
political monopolies.
¡  These types of organizations are not as rare in American politics as
one might think.
¡  In approximately thirty percent of the nation’s largest cities, a single
coalition has controlled all branches of government for more than
a decade at some point during the 20th century.
¡  This book asks why and how coalitions establish political
monopolies, it investigates the consequences monopolies have for
the communities that house them, and it explores why they
collapse.
Trounstine’s Study
¡ Illustrate that although rare, machine and reform
regimes did exist.
¡ Show that coalitions dominated city elections, that
these coalitions were goal seeking, that the outcomes
they wrought were intentional, and that they generated
clear patterns of governmental expenditures.
¡ The rich case-study literature on city regimes has
provided an excellent foundation for understanding
political monopolies and yet causal explanations tend
to be ad hoc, wholly dependent on individual contexts.
Why we will come to it in
more detail next week
¡  Ties together Machine and Reform Politics
¡  Trounstine demonstrates that despite many meaningful differences between machine
and reform cities, they share political patterns.
¡  The logic of political monopolies successfully explains these similarities.
¡  Threats to political goals inspired the development of monopolies in both types of cities.
¡  Politicians’ desire to ensure reelection undermined the ability for all constitutions to be
represented in both types of cities.
¡  Choices incumbent coalitions made to preserve their power ultimately led to their defeat
in both types of cities.
Political Machine Today?
¡  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abR1i48qeQ
Next week
¡ Choose cities
¡ Be assigned groups
¡ First discussion section
¡ Visit from Barbara Bry