LIBERAL PARTY

a British political party that emerged in the mid-19th century as the successor to the historic Whig Party. It was the major party in opposition to the Conservatives until 1918, after which it was supplanted by the Labour Party. The Liberals continued as a minor party until 1988, when they merged with the Social Democratic Party to form what is now called the Liberal Democratic Party (q.v.). Through its long history, the Liberal Party included various schools of thought, but all Liberals were united by the conviction that the source of progress lay in the free exercise of individual energy. The purpose of politics, therefore, was to create the conditions within which individual energy could thrive to the betterment of all. This article covers aspects of the Liberal Party in two sections: History and Policy and structure. Resources for further study are recommended in the Bibliography. a minor U.S. political party in New York state, founded in May 1944 by leaders of the moderate wing of the American Labor Party in revolt against the alleged infiltration of that party by communists. Although the party has usually favoured candidates of the Democratic Party (its 329,000 votes helped carry New York state for President Franklin D. Roosevelt in its first electoral try in 1944), it has on occasion supported liberal Republicans, such as John V. Lindsay for mayor of New York City (successfully in 1965 and 1969) and Jacob K. Javits for reelection as U.S. senator (successfully in 1968 and 1974 and unsuccessfully in 1980). Although the Liberal Party has lacked a grand organization, it has managed at times to promote as many as 100 clubs, or chapters, in New York City, a committee-at-large, a trades-union council, a Spanish-speaking division, and a youth division. Additional reading The most useful general accounts of the Liberal Party prior to the merger with the Social Democratic Party are to be found in Vernon Bogdanor (ed.), Liberal Party Politics (1983); and Chris Cook, A Short History of the Liberal Party, 190092, 4th ed. (1993). Paul David Webb