Federalist Party

The Federalist Party was the first American political party. It existed from the early 1790s to 1816; its remnants lasted into the 1820s. The Federalists called for a strong national government that promoted economic growth and fostered friendly relationships with Great Britain, as well as opposition to revolutionary France. The party controlled the federal government until 1801, when it was overwhelmed by the Republican opposition led by Thomas Jefferson. It came into being between 1792 and 1794 as a national coalition of bankers and businessmen in support of Alexander Hamilton's fiscal policies. These supporters developed into the organized Federalist Party, which was committed to a fiscally sound and nationalistic government. The only Federalist president was John Adams; although George Washington was broadly sympathetic to the Federalist program, he remained officially non-partisan during his entire presidency.

Federalist policies called for a national bank, tariffs, and good relations with Great Britain as expressed in the Jay Treaty negotiated in 1794. Hamilton developed the concept of implied powers and successfully argued the adoption of that interpretation of the United States Constitution. Their political opponents, the Democratic-Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson, denounced most of the Federalist policies, especially the bank and implied powers, and vehemently attacked the Jay Treaty as a sell-out of republican values to the British monarchy. The Jay Treaty passed, and the Federalists won most of the major legislative battles in the 1790's. They held a strong base in the nation's cities and in New England. After the Democratic-Republicans, whose base was in the rural South, won the hard-fought election of 1800, the Federalists never returned to power. They recovered some strength by their intense opposition to the War of 1812, but they practically vanished during the Era of Good Feelings that followed the end of the war in 1815.

Federal Party (Puerto Rico)

The Federal Party (Spanish: Partido Federal) was a short-lived political party in Puerto Rico.

The Federal Party was founded on October 1, 1899. It was formed by Luis Muñoz Rivera and other former members of the Autonomist Party during US military rule of the island following the Spanish–American War. The Federal Party supported greater self-rule for the island.

In February 1904, the party was reconstituted as the Union of Puerto Rico, or Union Party.

Further reading

Federalist Party (Italy)

The Federalist Party (Partito Federalista) was a federalist Italian political party.

It was launched as Federalist Union (Unione Federalista) on 1 June 1994 by Gianfranco Miglio, an influent Senator and political scientist who left Lega Nord in May over disagreements with Umberto Bossi, and Umberto Giovine, an ex-Socialist who was at the time member of Forza Italia. In July 1995 the group was strengthened by the joining of eleven deputies: all former members of Lega Nord, who had previously joined the Federalist Italian League and the Federalists and Liberal Democrats. This made possible the establishment of a sub-group within the Mixed Group in the Chamber.

The party was officially founded, changing its denomination, on 17 December 1995. At the founding congress in Milan also Vittorio Sgarbi, art critic and maverick politician, joined the party. The program of the party included the idea of transforming Italy in a federal State, modelled onto the examples of Switzerland and the United States, composed by three cantons (Padania, Etruria and Mediterranea) and the five existing autonomous regions. The federation would have been presided by a strong President.