Question: discuss five ways in which political parties compete for power

title: Political party
text: Political change is often easier with a coalition government than in one - party or two - party dominant systems . If factions in a two - party system are in fundamental disagreement on policy goals , or even principles , they can be slow to make policy changes , which appears to be the case now in the U.S. with power split between Democrats and Republicans . Still coalition governments struggle , sometimes for years , to change policy and often fail altogether , post World War II France and Italy being prime examples . When one party in a two - party system controls all elective branches , however , policy changes can be both swift and significant . Democrats Woodrow Wilson , Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson were beneficiaries of such fortuitous circumstances , as were Republicans as far removed in time as Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan . Barack Obama briefly had such an advantage between 2009 and 2011 . As of 2017 , President Donald Trump currently enjoys Republican control of both the house and senate .