machine, political

Cultural  

1. An administration of elected public officials who use their influential positions to solidify and perpetuate the power of their political party, often through dubious means. Machine politicians make free use of the spoils system and patronage, rewarding loyal party supporters with appointed government jobs. Other machine methods include gerrymandering election districts; planting party representatives in neighborhoods; making deals with judges, lawyers, and other professionals; and “buying” votes by offering social services to potential voters. When machine politics was especially strong in the United States, during the latter half of the nineteenth century, politicians would go so far as to offer beer for votes and would embezzle large amounts of public money. Machines also dominated party caucuses and conventions, thereby affecting politics at all levels of government.

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The most impressive political machine of the twentieth century was that of Mayor Richard Daley, in Chicago.

Machines are usually associated with big-city politics.

Example Sentences

Mr Kennedy said Mr Madigan “chose to protect his machine political allies instead of the women who were abused by them”, and “he no longer can lead our party.”

From Economist

As was natural, the one hundred and forty-six land-fraud defendants in Oregon, who included the foremost machine political leaders in the State, furnished the backbone of the opposition to me in the Presidential contest of 1912.

From Project Gutenberg