Democrat:
In political science, a democrat (lowercase d) is an advocate, follower, or proponent of democracy. In politics, a Democrat (uppercase D) is a member, delegate, or supporter of a Democratic political party such as the Democratic Party in the United States or the Australian Democrats in Australia.
The Democratic Party is one of the two major United States political parties. The party is currently the minority in both the Senate and the House.
Its origins lie in the original Republican Party founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1793 (today, this party is usually referred to as the “Democratic-Republican Party” for the sake of convenience; but such usage is anachronistic). After the disintegration of the Federalist party, the Republicans were the only major party in American politics. The presidency of Andrew Jackson, however, destroyed the unity of the party, with the Jacksonians forming the Democratic-Republican faction, opposed by the National Republicans, led by John Quincy Adams. The Jacksonian “Democratic-Republicans” soon became known as simply “Democrats”. From 1833 to 1856, the Democratic party was opposed chiefly by the Whig Party. From 1856 onward its main opposition has come from the modern Republican Party.
In contemporary times, its primary political principles include multilateralism, secularism, pro-choice and gay rights, multi-culturalism, environmentalism, and a commitment to tempering capitalism with programs of social welfare. The political platform of the Democratic Party has been generally described as left-wing. The New Democrat movement of the 1980s and 1990s, however, have somewhat eroded the party’s previously more leftist policies in favor of a more centrist approach. This is a primary complaint of many members of the Green Party, leading some Greens, such as Peter Camejo, to declare, “The Democratic Party is where progressive politics go to die.” But Democrats generally challenge the validity of the Green critique. A longtime Pennsylvania Democratic Party leader, State Rep. Mark B. Cohen of Philadelphia, says that “without the Democratic Party, there would be little chance of having progressive governments or progressive programs in the vast majority of American states or localities”.
