United States presidential election of 1800
The United States presidential election of 1800 was a significant event in American political history, marking the first peaceful transfer of power between rival political parties. The contest was primarily between incumbent President John Adams of the Federalist Party and Thomas Jefferson, a leader of the Democratic-Republicans, who had previously collaborated in founding the nation but became political adversaries. The election was contentious, characterized by intense campaigning and personal attacks, with Adams accusing Jefferson of being a supporter of France and Jefferson labeling Adams as a tyrant.
The election ended in a tie between Jefferson and Aaron Burr, both receiving 73 electoral votes, which led to the decision being passed to the House of Representatives. After multiple ballots, Jefferson was eventually elected president, while Burr became vice president. This election not only highlighted the flaws in the original Electoral College system but also introduced negative campaigning in U.S. politics and solidified the two-party system that remains influential today. The aftermath spurred the ratification of the Twelfth Amendment in 1804, which reformed the electoral process to prevent such ties in the future.
United States presidential election of 1800
The United States presidential election of 1800 was a contentious campaign that marked several notable milestones in US election history and forced significant changes in the electoral process. The election was technically contested between the incumbent President John Adams and challenger Thomas Jefferson—former allies turned political enemies. Adams's Federalist Party favored a strong central government while Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans believed the states should have more power. Because of the electoral system in place at the time, the campaign ended in a tie between Jefferson and another Democratic-Republican, Aaron Burr. The election was decided in the House of Representatives where Jefferson emerged victorious.
Background
The United States declared its independence from Great Britain in 1776, and achieved it after the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783. In setting out to build a nation, the Founding Fathers were at odds over how power should be distributed in the new government. The Federalists thought the United States needed a strong federal, or central, government that could pay off war debts and handle international relations. The Anti-Federalists, wary of a national government with too much power, wanted state and local governments to have more of a say in their own matters.
The Founding Fathers also disagreed on how the nation should choose its new leader. While debating the US Constitution in 1787, state representatives proposed three methods of selecting a chief executive. These were by majority vote of the population, ballots cast by members of Congress, and a vote by state governors. Smaller states feared a popular vote because they believed larger states would dominate the elections. The representatives reached a compromise and developed the Electoral College system.
Under the system in place at the time, each state received a number of presidential electors equal to its combined total membership in the House and Senate. Each elector was given two votes for president; one of the votes must have been cast for a candidate from outside the elector's home state. The candidate who received the majority of electoral votes won the presidency, the candidate with the second-most was named vice president. In the event no candidate received a majority of the votes, the election was to be sent to the House of Representatives to determine a winner.
Overview
The first presidential election in the United States was held in 1789. Revolutionary War hero and Federalist George Washington essentially ran unopposed and easily won the office. In 1792, Washington again faced no meaningful opposition and won re-election. In both campaigns, Washington's Federalist ally, John Adams, was elected vice president.
When Washington refused to run for a third term in 1796, Adams became the leading Federalist candidate for president. He was opposed by Thomas Jefferson, the main author of the Declaration of Independence. In the 1790s, Jefferson had formed the Democratic-Republican Party, a political group with a governing philosophy similar to the Anti-Federalists. Jefferson and Adams were former allies who had worked together in founding the United States. In the 1796 election, Adams defeated Jefferson by a 71 to 68 electoral vote margin. By rule, Jefferson became vice president.
Adams's policies as president divided the public and members of his own party. Among the main issues were rising tensions with France and a tax implemented by the Federalist Congress to fund a new army. Adams also passed a series of laws known as the Alien and Sedition Acts, which allowed for fines or imprisonment of foreigners suspected of treason or anyone who openly criticized the government. Jefferson was steadfastly opposed to these measures.
Adams and Jefferson again faced off in the 1800 presidential election. Also on the ballot were the Federalist governor of South Carolina, Thomas Pinckney, and Democratic-Republican candidate, Aaron Burr. The campaign was bitterly fought with both sides accusing the other of backing policies that would destroy the young United States. Adams accused Jefferson of supporting the French and labeled him a coward and an atheist. Jefferson portrayed Adams as a fool and a tyrant.
When the election results were counted, Jefferson and Burr tied with 73 electoral votes apiece, while Adams finished with 65 and Pinckney with 64. The Democratic-Republicans also captured a sizable majority in Congress, which had been controlled by the Federalists. Support for the Federalists primarily came from the industrialized northeastern states, while the Democratic-Republicans won the more rural southern and western states.
With the election results ending in a tie, the decision of who would be the next president was sent to the House of Representatives. At the time, the United States consisted of sixteen states, so nine state delegations would be needed to determine a winner. Because the newly elected Democratic-Republican Congress had not yet been sworn in, the House was still under Federalist control. Many Federalists hated Jefferson and did not want to cast their votes for him. Prominent Federalist leader Alexander Hamilton was a staunch enemy of Aaron Burr and pushed members of Congress to support Jefferson. In February 1801, the House of Representatives held thirty-five ballots without arriving at a majority decision. On the thirty-sixth ballot on February 17, the House finally elected Jefferson. Aaron Burr became vice president.
As president, Jefferson undid many of the Federalist policies of Adams and preached reconciliation between parties. He referred to the election of 1800 as the "Revolution of 1800," because it was the first transfer of power from one political party to another in US history. The election marked the first instances of negative campaigning in a US election. It also helped establish the two-party system that dominates modern politics. The Federalist Party disbanded after the War of 1812; while the modern Democratic Party splintered from the Democratic-Republicans in 1824. The modern Republican Party was not founded until 1856.
The tie vote in the 1800 presidential election exposed a serious flaw in the way the early Electoral College was constructed. In 1803, Congress proposed the Twelfth Amendment to allow for separate electoral votes for president and vice president. The amendment was ratified by fourteen of the then seventeen states in 1804 and became law.
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