Jump To:

• Republican Party
  Republican Party

  noun

  one of the two major political parties in the U.S.: originated 1854–56.
• Republican party
  Republican party

  A political party that began in 1854 and is today one of the two major political parties in the United States. Originally, it was composed mainly of northerners from both major parties of the time, the Democrats and the Whigs, with some former Know-Nothings as well. The first Republicans were united by their opposition to the expansion of slavery. Their first winning presidential candidate was Abraham Lincoln in 1860.

Republican Party

American  

noun

1. one of the two major political parties in the U.S.: originated 1854–56.

2. U.S. History. Democratic-Republican Party.

---

Republican Party British  

noun

1. the more conservative of the two major political parties in the US: established around 1854 Compare Democratic Party

2. any of a number of political parties in other countries, usually so named to indicate their opposition to monarchy

3. history another name for the Democratic-Republican Party

---

Republican party ¹ Cultural  

1. A political party that began in 1854 and is today one of the two major political parties in the United States. Originally, it was composed mainly of northerners from both major parties of the time, the Democrats and the Whigs, with some former Know-Nothings as well. The first Republicans were united by their opposition to the expansion of slavery. Their first winning presidential candidate was Abraham Lincoln in 1860.

---

Republican party ² Cultural  

1. One of the two major political parties in the United States. The party began in 1854 (see under “American History to 1865”); Abraham Lincoln, elected in 1860, was the first Republican president. During Reconstruction, many Republicans were eager to punish the South for its former slaveholding and for its secession from the United States. The northern Republicans, for example, supported carpetbaggers in southern governments. After Reconstruction, the Republicans favored a high protective tariff and were generally considered the defenders of northeastern and business interests. The party supported the Spanish-American War and the expansion of United States territory overseas. Some Republicans were part of the Progressive movement of the early twentieth century. In the 1920s, the party reestablished its reputation for supporting business and as being wary of any expansion of the place of government in national life. This characterization is still a reasonably accurate, if simplistic, description of basic Republican views. Since Lincoln, the Republican presidents have been Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush.

---

Discover More

The party's symbol (see also symbol) is an elephant.

The party is often called the GOP, which stands for “Grand Old Party.”

Compare meaning

How does republican-party compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Democratic Party vs. Republican Party

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Republican Party Republican party

The resulting revival of antislavery sentiment helped give rise to the Republican Party in 1854.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

"Karoline will now be one of my top outside advisors, and an influential voice within the Republican Party," President Donald Trump wrote in a social media post announcing her departure.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

Trump's fundraising dinner at the golf club on Tuesday evening, held to raise money for the Republican Party ahead of the midterm elections, went ahead without incident.

From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026

President Trump touched down in Los Angeles on Tuesday evening and headed directly to his Rancho Palos Verdes golf course to headline a fundraiser for the Republican Party.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

He spent his days hanging around the Republican Party headquarters on Fifth Avenue.

From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow

Trump is currently visiting California to attend a Republican party fundraising dinner at the course on Tuesday.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

Longwell felt there should be some place on the internet for people like her, those who wanted to push the Republican party in a different direction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 13, 2026

His Republican party holds only a slim majority in both the House and Senate.

From Barron's ● Mar. 7, 2026

Dowd broke away from the Republican party due to his unhappiness with Bush’s handling of the Iraq war.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2025

What's more, Adams let it be known that he was considering either Jefferson or Madison to head the delegation—in effect, including the leadership of the Republican party in the shaping of foreign policy.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis