WI Challenge: merge Democrat and Republican parties by World War II

Your challenge if you choose to accept it is to merge the Democrats and Republicans as a single political party in the USA.

The POD must be on or after January 1, 1900. The party must be merged by World War II.

Note: The Constitutional separation of powers must still exist. No parliamentary form of government.

Good luck.
 
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Have New Dealers from both parties merge the parties in The Democrat-Republican Party, Anti-New Dealers form their own Federalist Party.
 

Jasen777

Donor
They're only going to merge if a new party raises to crush one of them. The 2-party system crashing is something much harder.
 
POD: Leon Czolgosz gets a cold and stays home. William McKinley is not killed. Leads to a TL something like this:

Teddy Roosevelt is denied the GOP noimination in 1904. William Jennings Bryan wins the 1904 elections. TR runs as a joint Republican-Progressive Party candidate in 1908.

In 1916, TR runs for a third term due to WWI (not quite the same as OTL). The Republicans (i.e. Old Guard Conservatives) defect and run a protest candidate. TR still manages a near win.

In 1920, Republican candidate wins the White House.

In 1924, Democrat wins. Re-elected in 1928.

In 1932, Progressive party wins in a landslide. Socialist Party also sees marked gains. Republicans and Democrats are increasingly conservative, though of different stripes.

In the 1940s and 1950s, Republicans and Democrats run in alliance against Progressive and Socialists. Socialists lose ground due to fear of communism in the Union of Asian Peoples' Republics (India and China).

In the 1960s, oppoisition to Civil Rights legislation prompts official union of Democratic-Republican Party (marketing itself as the Party of Jefferson). Socialists remain a third party. Progressive Party in power.

Due to hung election in 1968, electoral college abolished in favor of a system resembling the Birch-Bayh Amendment.

In the 1970s, social conservatism allows Dem-Reps to gain power for first time since merger.

In the 1990s, Progressive Party adopts "New Centrism."

In 2008, Socialist Party elects first POTUS.
 
I think a merger DURING the war is more likely. ("We put our differences aside..."). And keeping in spirit, a worse WWI where Mexico invade US...
 
Teddy wins in 1912- his "Progressive Party" attracts progressive members of both GOP and Democrat- political chaos reigns as GOP and Democratic leadership reel from loss-

Roosevelt attempts to involve the United States in WWI- His speeches about the threat of the "Huns" (Germans) and the need to repay "La Feyette's debt" along with news of French and British bravery in saving Paris sways Americans- Anti-War Eugene Debs and the budding labor movement move toward an alliance with big-city ethnic bosses, most of whom oppose the pro-Entente intervention in Europe- the lines are increasingly drawn between the anti-war coalition and the pro-war coalition- The United States intervenes in Europe following German submarine attacks and passes tough treason laws (as per OTL)- American intervention leads to quicker war- ends in late '16 early '17- a series of American victory in '16 leads to Roosevelt's 3rd election victory- Treaty of Versailles with Roosevelt involved and the clear American commitment to the Entente (rather than late involvement as in OTL) is much less harsh- Russia avoids Revolution and Civil War-

The political alignment has now changed- But how I don't know- I want to say that the political bosses of the northern cities and the labor unions are going to get into an alliance, attempting to capitalize on the gains that they'll be able to make under Roosevelt (Roosevelt believed in something like Big Labor and Big Business needed each other, with some government assistance)- pushing a more populist agenda in the South- championed by the labor-machine alliance (called, for orginality's sake the Labor Party). Except that I don't think this will happen.

Rather, the "Labor Party" above will become part of Roosevelt's coalition, while the remaining conservatives parts of the Democratic and Republican Parties, those sort of anti-New Deal kind of people (the Republicans of the '20s more or less) end up in maybe the "Federalist" Party or the Democratic Party. I'm actually willing to bet that you could just see a sea change in the party alignment, and Roosevelt's men would takeover the GOP, while the Democrats take in the refugees- which results in an exodus from the Democratic Party- so now the progressive Republicans and the status quo Democrats stand against each other.
 
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