Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party, also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP), is a <a href="/facts/Right-wing_politics/CVoubHMm">right-wing</a> <a href="/facts/Political_parties_in_the_United_States/N0SBY8ux">political party in the United States</a> and one of the <a href="/facts/Two-party_system/qL4usvQF">two major parties</a>, it emerged as the main rival of the then-dominant <a href="/facts/Democratic_Party_(United_States)/MNe3nDrL">Democratic Party</a> in the 1850s, and the two parties have dominated <a href="/facts/American_politics/huMQkzQD">American politics</a> since then.
The Republican Party was founded in 1854 by <a href="/facts/Anti-slavery/LDD5kEAc">anti-slavery</a> activists opposing the <a href="/facts/Kansas%25E2%2580%2593Nebraska_Act/jemqDJk0">Kansas–Nebraska Act</a> and the expansion of <a href="/facts/Slavery_in_the_United_States/CduIa8do">slavery</a> into U.S. territories. It rapidly gained support in the <a href="/facts/Northern_United_States/rEDDwPGk">North</a>, drawing in former <a href="/facts/Whig_Party_(United_States)/4tQTAzq2">Whigs</a> and <a href="/facts/Free_Soil_Party/HjMTzjBb">Free Soilers</a>. <a href="/facts/Abraham_Lincoln/F8VqYAsA">Abraham Lincoln</a>'s <a href="/facts/1860_United_States_presidential_election/DxVYAjwj">election in 1860</a> led to the secession of Southern states and the outbreak of the <a href="/facts/American_Civil_War/A9FT3ksD">American Civil War</a>. Under Lincoln and a Republican-controlled Congress, the party led efforts to preserve the <a href="/facts/Union_(American_Civil_War)/KW6wJt7J">Union</a>, defeat the <a href="/facts/Confederate_States_of_America/jMSDM4q3">Confederacy</a>, and abolish slavery. During the <a href="/facts/Reconstruction_era/W6lgbxvn">Reconstruction era</a>, Republicans sought to extend <a href="/facts/Civil_rights/DBK7m6s2">civil rights</a> protections to <a href="/facts/Freedmen/12NuMqwR">freedmen</a>, but by the late 1870s the party shifted its focus toward business interests and <a href="/facts/Industrialization_in_the_United_States/sYsNXqSq">industrial expansion</a>. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it dominated national politics, promoting <a href="/facts/Protective_tariff/lUEUSSgC">protective tariffs</a>, infrastructure development, and <a href="/facts/Laissez-faire/euKoqFk7">laissez-faire</a> economic policies, while navigating internal divisions between <a href="/facts/Progressive_Era/VhKLrvcU">progressive</a> and <a href="/facts/Conservatism_in_the_United_States/ye90yMMJ">conservative</a> factions. The party's support declined during the <a href="/facts/Great_Depression/5K13wcg0">Great Depression</a>, as the <a href="/facts/New_Deal_coalition/pnDjKwmu">New Deal coalition</a> reshaped American politics. Republicans returned to national power with <a href="/facts/1952_United_States_presidential_election/Fs487584">the 1952 election</a> of <a href="/facts/Dwight_D._Eisenhower/a21WXe8r">Dwight D. Eisenhower</a>, whose <a href="/facts/Rockefeller_Republican/3CWwlCsu">moderate conservatism</a> reflected a pragmatic acceptance of many <a href="/facts/New_Deal/R33TXQFB">New Deal</a>-era programs.
The Republican Party has undergone several ideological and demographic shifts since the mid-20th century. Following the <a href="/facts/Civil_rights_era/llwscvvR">civil rights era</a>, it gained strength in the South through the <a href="/facts/Southern_strategy/MdkeGlfq">Southern strategy</a>, which appealed to many White voters disaffected by Democratic support for civil rights. The <a href="/facts/1980_United_States_presidential_election/70vx94U4">1980 election</a> of <a href="/facts/Ronald_Reagan/z6AaKAad">Ronald Reagan</a> marked a major realignment, consolidating <a href="/facts/Reagan_coalition/hY1ILbRx">a coalition</a> of <a href="/facts/Free_market/KnK7JohY">free market</a> advocates, <a href="/facts/Social_conservatives/96NpePX8">social conservatives</a>, and foreign policy <a href="/facts/War_hawk/wzLHgM3P">hawks</a>. Since 2009, internal divisions have grown, leading to a shift toward <a href="/facts/Right-wing_populism/Wr5gfR88">right-wing populism</a>, which ultimately became its dominant faction. This culminated in the <a href="/facts/2016_United_States_presidential_election/Bs9DUEoc">2016 election</a> of <a href="/facts/Donald_Trump/pqqKY21P">Donald Trump</a>, whose leadership style and political agenda—often referred to as <a href="/facts/Trumpism/Lqow3Im7">Trumpism</a>—reshaped the party's identity. In the 21st century, the Republican Party's strongest demographics are <a href="/facts/Urban%25E2%2580%2593rural_political_divide/ugPYNbq1">rural voters</a>, <a href="/facts/White_Southerners/p2qp9Hxz">White Southerners</a>, <a href="/facts/Evangelical/64I65VDK">evangelical</a> Christians, men, <a href="/facts/Senior_citizens/nEpQmo9g">senior citizens</a>, and <a href="/facts/Voter_turnout_in_United_States_presidential_elections/QflAD1K9">voters</a> without <a href="/facts/Educational_attainment_in_the_United_States/zGUyzNom">college degrees</a>. 
On economic issues, the party has maintained a pro-capital attitude since its inception. It currently supports Trump's <a href="/facts/Mercantilism/96U7yI74">mercantilist</a> policies, including <a href="/facts/Tariff/NCluKCm2">tariffs</a> on imports on all countries at the highest rates in the world while opposing <a href="/facts/Economic_globalization/9aEgmPSr">globalization</a> and <a href="/facts/Free_trade/Mg9NLrdw">free trade</a>. It also supports low income taxes and deregulation while opposing <a href="/facts/Labor_unions_in_the_United_States/FHruckNo">labor unions</a>, a <a href="/facts/Public_health_insurance_option/CnMAos4o">public health insurance option</a> and <a href="/facts/Single-payer_healthcare/vLF537yk">single-payer healthcare</a>. On social issues, it advocates for <a href="/facts/Abortion_law_in_the_United_States_by_state/Fs2nAqb0">restricting abortion</a>, supports <a href="/facts/Law_and_order_(politics)/pjKtwSx7">tough on crime</a> policies, such as <a href="/facts/Capital_punishment/4pbmeUIb">capital punishment</a> and the prohibition of <a href="/facts/Recreational_drug_use/eoBD3vKn">recreational drug use</a>, promotes gun ownership and <a href="/facts/Gun_law_in_the_United_States/R4BPlJRX">easing gun restrictions</a>, and opposes <a href="/facts/Transgender_rights/mIGBCwWB">transgender rights</a>. The party favors limited legal <a href="/facts/Immigration/8vNxfBhT">immigration</a> but strongly opposes <a href="/facts/Illegal_immigration/bSFppH6r">illegal immigration</a> and favors the <a href="/facts/Deportation/lfWFhQTW">deportation</a> of those without permanent legal status, such as <a href="/facts/Illegal_immigration/bSFppH6r">undocumented immigrants</a> and those with <a href="/facts/Temporary_protected_status/zTS5YMxd">temporary protected status</a>. In foreign policy, the party supports U.S. aid to <a href="/facts/Israel/dEe3IcaY">Israel</a> but is divided on aid to <a href="/facts/Ukraine/Qof0uqAj">Ukraine</a> and improving <a href="/facts/Russia%25E2%2580%2593United_States_relations/WXXykSAX">relations with Russia</a>, with Trump's ascent empowering an <a href="/facts/Isolationism/sQUIHlja">isolationist</a> "<a href="/facts/America_First/GSMLdv3t">America First</a>" foreign policy agenda.

Republican Party (United States) open-in-new

Republican Party (United States)