In the United States, the political stage has been dominated by the two-party system right from the era of Federalists versus Jeffersonian Republicans to the ongoing era of Democrats versus Republicans. However, these are not the only parties in the country. American politics is also characterized by the presence of small political parties, which are not in contention for the Presidential elections and thus, are unknown for most of the world. Instead, they field candidates for Congressional and/or state-level offices of the US administration. American Political Parties Over the Years The Federalist Party and Democratic-Republican Party were the first two major parties in the American history. The Era of Good Feelings (1816 - 1824) marked the end of the first political system. The second party system began with the modern Democratic Party and Whig Party at loggerheads in the first half of 19th century. The decline of the Whig Party and emergence of the Republican Party marked the beginning of third party system in the second half of the 19th century. The fourth party system, which is referred to as the Progressive Era, was dominated by the Republicans with a brief stint for the Democrats. In fourth party system, the central issues were different from what they were in the third party system. The fifth party system, the one that we follow today, was formed as a result of the New Deal coalition with the Democrats and Republicans at loggerheads in 1933. Political Parties in the United States Today As of today, the two major parties in the US political arena are the Democratic Party and Republican Party. Even though various other parties have achieved minor representation at the state as well as national level, it's the two major political parties which have been in control of the US Congress since 1856. Given below are the details of these two and other political entities in the United States as of today. The Democratic Party (Democrats) The modern Democratic Party was founded in 1828 from factions of the Democratic-Republican Party. Its ideology is largely based on American liberalism and progressivism. In the US political spectrum, the Democratic Party is considered a center-left party. It is the oldest political party in the United States and also, one of the oldest in the world. As of today, this party has given the United States 15 US Presidents, including President Barack Obama. Other Democrats in the list include Woodrow Wilson (1913 - 1921), Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933 - 1945), Harry Truman (1945 - 1953), etc. The Republican Party (Republicans) The Republican Party, also referred to as the Grand Old Party (GOP), was founded by anti-slavery activists, modernizers, and ex-Whigs in 1854. In the US political spectrum, the Republican ideology is typically characterized by American conservatism, social conservatism, and economic liberalism. The Republican Party first came to power within six years of its inception in 1860, under the leadership of President Abraham Lincoln. The last Republican to become the US President was President George W. Bush (Jr.), who served as the president for two consecutive terms. Other Republicans featuring in this list include Theodore Roosevelt (1901 - 1909), Dwight Eisenhower (1953 - 1961), Ronald Reagan (1981 - 1989), etc. Other Political Parties in the US Other political parties with a significant role to play in the American politics include the Constitution Party (1992), Libertarian Party (1971), and the Green Party (1980s.) The third largest party in terms of registered voters, the Constitution Party follows the ideology of American nationalism and National conservatism. The Libertarian Party ideology is based on libertarianism and non-interventionism, while that of the Green Party is based on green politics. Other than these, there are other small parties, which do not run for the Presidential polls, but do contest for other offices of the US administration.

Political Party	Year Formed	Ideology
America First Party	2002	Paleoconservatism, economic nationalism, non-interventionism
American Party	1968	Paleoconservatism
America's Independent Party	2008	Conservatism, Constitutionalism
Boston Tea Party	2006	Libertarianism, Non-interventionism
Communist Party of the United States of America	1919	Communism, Marxism-Leninism
Florida Whig Party	2006	Syncretic politics, Transpartisanship
Independence Party of America	2007	Non-partisan democracy, Populism
Moderate Party	2006	Moderate, Centrism, Peace Open, Democracy
Modern Whig Party	2008	Modern Whig philosophy, Centrism, Pragmatism, Syncretic politics, Transpartisanship
National Socialist Movement	1959	Neo-Nazism
New American Independent Party	2004	Moderate, Pragmatism, Grassroots democracy
Objectivist Party	2008	Objectivism
Party for Socialism and Liberation	2004	Communism, Marxism-Leninism
Peace and Freedom Party	1967	Social democracy, Democratic socialism
Pirate Party of the United States	2006	Intellectual property reform, Freedom of information
Prohibition Party	1869	Temperance
Reform Party of the United States of America	1995	Populism, Centrism
Socialist Equality Party	2008	Trotskyism, Socialism
Socialist Party USA	1973	Democratic socialism
Socialist Workers Party	1938	Socialism, Marxism
United States Marijuana Party	2002	Anti-Prohibitionism
Unity Party of America	2004	Centrism
Working Families Party	1998	Progressivism, Populism, Social democracy

As of 2004, the Democratic Party had the largest number of registered voters (72 million), followed by the Republican Party (55 million). The landslide victory for President Barack Obama in the 2008 polls gave the Democrats an edge. Whether they will be able to hold on to it, is something that only time will tell.