Reform in Politics: Good vs. Bad Sides

Reform in politics during a period of large-scale immigration involved incorporating immigrants into the political process, which was seen as messy and undesirable by middle-class Protestant white reformers. The reform spirit aimed to rationalize and make the political process less chaotic, leading to suffrage restrictions and the introduction of the secret ballot called the Australian ballot. However, this reform also led to negative aspects such as Jim Crow laws that aimed to exclude certain groups from voting. This historical political landscape is characterized by favoritism and transactional relationships, contrasting sharply with modern perceptions of politics.