United States Presidential Election, 1824

1820 ← October 26 – December 2, 1824 → 1828

All 261 electoral votes of the Electoral College 131 electoral votes needed to win   Nominee John Q. Adams Andrew Jackson Party Democratic-Republican Democratic-Republican Home state Massachusetts Tennessee Running mate John C. Calhoun John C. Calhoun Electoral vote 84 99 States carried 7 12 Popular vote 113,122[1] 151,271[1] Percentage 30.9% 41.4%   Nominee William H. Crawford Henry Clay Party Democratic-Republican Democratic-Republican Home state Georgia Kentucky Running mate Nathaniel Macon (replacing Albert Gallatin) Nathan Sanford Electoral vote 41 37 States carried 2 3 Popular vote 40,856[1] 47,531[1] Percentage 11.2% 13.0%

Presidential election results map. Blue denotes states won by Jackson, Orange denotes those won by Adams, Green denotes those won by Crawford, Light Yellow denotes those won by Clay. Numbers indicate the number of electoral votes allotted to each state.

President before election James Monroe Democratic-Republican Elected President John Quincy Adams Democratic-Republican

The United States presidential election of 1824 was the 10th quadrennial presidential election, held from Tuesday, October 26, to Thursday, December 2, 1824. John Quincy Adams was elected President on February 9, 1825. The election was decided by the House of Representatives under the provisions of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution after no candidate secured a majority of the electoral vote. It was the first presidential election in which the candidate who received the most electoral votes (Andrew Jackson) did not become President, a source of great bitterness for Jackson and his supporters, who proclaimed the election of Adams a corrupt bargain.

Prior to the election, the Democratic-Republican Party had been the sole national political organization in the United States, winning the last six consecutive presidential elections, a period of one-party government known as the Era of Good Feelings. In 1824 the Democratic-Republican Party failed to agree on a choice of candidate for president, with the result that the party temporarily split behind four separate candidates of differing regions. By the next election, the largest faction, led by Andrew Jackson would become the de-facto Democratic-Republican Party, having achieved legitimacy as party leader through winning the popular vote and achieving a sort of moral authority through the way the election of 1824 was decided--a 'corrupt' alliance between Adams and an additional, lesser rival to 'steal' the presidency. By 1828, the Jacksonian wing would lead the Democratic-Republicans (and eventually shorten its name simply to the modern Democratic Party), and after that next cycle, the other factions, led by John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay would disaffect, dispersing but briefly coming together in coalition as the National Republican Party (no relation to the current Republican Party) before fully fragmenting and reforming, in two wings as the 1830s and 40s new US minority party, the Whig Party.

General election[edit]

Campaign[edit]

The previous competition between the Federalist Party and the Democratic-Republican Party collapsed after the War of 1812 due to the disintegration of the Federalists' popular appeal, and U.S. President James Monroe of the Republican party was actually able to run without opposition in the election of 1820. Like all the previous two-term presidents, James Monroe declined to seek re-nomination in the election of 1824.

Monroe's Vice President, Daniel D. Tompkins, was considered unelectable due to his overwhelming unpopularity and major health problems (which would ultimately claim his life in June 1825, a little over three months after he left office), thus the presidential nomination was left wide open within the Democratic Republican Party, the only major national political entity remaining in the United States at the time. Five serious contenders were recognized:

William H. Crawford, Secretary of the Treasury, who had been nominated by a caucus in March-April of 1824 of a minority of the Democratic Republican members of the U.S. Congress; about 70 of a possible 270 voters attended. The majority decided that this caucus was elitist and anti-democratic, thus they were inclined to disregard its preference.

John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State, who held the second most prominent position in the American government at that time. Both James Madison and James Monroe (the last two presidents) had gone from U.S. Secretary of State to the presidency, and there was an attitude that the post of U.S. Secretary of State was intended to be preparatory to promotion to the presidency.

Henry Clay, Speaker of the House, who was well known and well respected across the nation. Henry Clay probably would have received the Democratic Republican Party's Congressional caucus nomination if he had wanted it, but he did not believe that the caucus process was the best means to select presidential candidates.

Andrew Jackson, a military hero, former governor, and former senator, who was widely viewed as a champion of the common man in many parts of the country.

John C. Calhoun, Secretary of War, who had a strong following in South Carolina and Pennsylvania. Pressures within South Carolina state politics were forcing him to shift from his earlier stance as a nationalist to his later position as a rigid defender of states' rights. Calhoun decided there was no way he could win the presidency against such tough competition.

Candidates[edit]

• 

  Secretary of State John Quincy Adams

• 

  House Speaker Henry Clay from Kentucky

• 

  Senator Andrew Jackson from Tennessee

• 

  Secretary of the Treasury William H. Crawford

Candidates who withdrew before election[edit]

• 

  Secretary of War John C. Calhoun

• 

  Secretary of the Navy Smith Thompson

Declined to run for office[edit]

• 

  SBUS President Langdon Cheves from South Carolina

• 

  Governor DeWitt Clinton of New York

• 

  Senator Nathaniel Macon from North Carolina

• 

  Chief Justice John Marshall

• 

  Representative John Randolph from Virginia

The traditional Congressional caucus nominated Crawford for president and Albert Gallatin for vice-president, but it was sparsely attended and was widely attacked as undemocratic. Gallatin later withdrew from the contest for the vice presidency, after quickly becoming disillusioned by repeated attacks on his credibility made by the other candidates. He was replaced by North Carolina senator Nathaniel Macon. A serious impediment to Crawford's candidacy was created by the effects of a stroke he suffered in 1823. Among other candidates, John Quincy Adams had more support than Henry Clay because of his huge popularity among the old Federalist voters in New England. By this time, even the traditionally Federalist Adams family had come to terms with the Democratic-Republican Party.

The election was as much a contest of favorite sons as it was a conflict over policy, although positions on tariffs and internal improvements did create some significant disagreements. In general, the candidates were favored by different sections of the country: Adams was strong in the Northeast; Jackson in the South, West and mid-Atlantic; Clay in parts of the West; and Crawford in parts of the East.

Secretary of War John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, who was initially a fifth candidate in the early stages of consideration, declined to run for president, but did decide to seek the vice presidency. For president, he backed Jackson, whose political beliefs he considered more compatible with those of most voters in the southern states. Both Adams and Jackson supporters backed Calhoun's candidacy as vice president, thus he easily secured the majority of electoral votes he needed to secure that office. In reality, Calhoun was vehemently opposed to nearly all of Adams's policies, but he did nothing to dissuade Adams supporters from voting for him for vice president.

Results by county explicitly indicating the percentage of the winning candidate in each county. Shades of blue are for Jackson (Democratic-Republican), shades of red are for Adams (Democratic-Republican), shades of yellow are for Clay (Democratic-Republican), and shades of green are for Crawford (Democratic-Republican).

The campaigning for presidential election of 1824 took many forms. Contrafacta, or well known songs and tunes whose lyrics have been altered, were used to promote political agendas and presidential candidates. Below can be found a sound clip featuring "Hunters of Kentucky," a tune written by Samuel Woodsworth in 1815 under the title "The Unfortunate Miss Bailey." Contrafacta such as this one, which promoted Andrew Jackson as a national hero, have been a long-standing tradition in presidential elections. Another form of campaigning during this election was through newsprint. Political cartoons and partisan writings were best circulated among the voting public through newspapers. Presidential candidate John C. Calhoun was one of the candidates most directly involved through his participation in the publishing of the newspaper The Patriot as a member of the editorial staff. This was a sure way to promote his own political agendas and campaign. In contrast, most candidates involved in early 19th century elections did not run their own political campaigns. Instead it was left to volunteer citizens and partisans to speak on their behalf.^[2][3][4][5]

	Hunters of Kentucky Jackson supporters used this Battle of New Orleans anthem as their campaign song.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Results[edit]

Considering the large numbers of candidates and strong regional preferences, it is not surprising that the results of the election of 1824 were inconclusive. The electoral map confirmed the candidates' sectional support, with Adams winning outright in the New England states, Jackson gleaning success in states throughout the nation, Clay attracting votes from the West, and Crawford attracting votes from the eastern South. Andrew Jackson received more electoral and popular votes than any other candidate, but not the majority of 131 electoral votes needed to win the election. Since no candidate received the required majority of electoral votes, the presidential election was decided by the House of Representatives (see "Contingent election" below). Meanwhile, John C. Calhoun easily defeated his rivals in the race for the vice presidency, as the support of both the Adams and Jackson camps quickly gave him an unassailable lead over the other candidates.

^(a) The popular vote figures exclude Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana, New York, South Carolina, and Vermont. In all of these states, the Electors were chosen by the state legislatures rather than by popular vote.^[6]

^(b) Jackson was nominated by the Tennessee state legislature and by the Democratic Party of Pennsylvania.

^(c) Crawford was nominated by a caucus of 66 congressmen that called itself the "Democratic members of Congress".

^(d) Clay was nominated by the Kentucky state legislature.

^(e) Adams was nominated by the Massachusetts state legislature.

Results by state[edit]

Breakdown by ticket[edit]

1825 Contingent election[edit]

The voting by state in the House of Representatives. States in pink voted for Adams, states in blue for Crawford, and states in green for Jackson.

Since no candidate received a majority of the electoral votes, the presidential election was thrown into the U.S. House of Representatives. Following the provisions of the Twelfth Amendment, only the top three candidates in the electoral vote were admitted as candidates in the House: Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, and William Harris Crawford. Henry Clay, who happened to be Speaker of the House at the time, was left out. Clay detested Jackson and had said of him, "I cannot believe that killing 2,500 Englishmen at New Orleans qualifies for the various, difficult, and complicated duties of the Chief Magistracy."^[8] Moreover, Clay's American System was far closer to Adams' position on tariffs and internal improvements than Jackson's or Crawford's, so Clay threw his support to Adams. Thus Adams was elected President on February 9, 1825, on the first ballot,^[9][10] with 13 states, followed by Jackson with 7, and Crawford with 4.

Adams' victory shocked Jackson, who, as the winner of a plurality of both the popular and electoral votes, expected to be elected president. Interestingly enough, not too long before the results of the House election, an anonymous statement appeared in a Philadelphia paper, called the Columbian Observer. The statement, said to be from a member of Congress, essentially accused Clay of selling Adams his support for the office of Secretary of State. No formal investigation was conducted, so the matter was neither confirmed nor denied. When Clay was indeed offered the position after Adams was victorious, he opted to accept and continue to support the administration he voted for, knowing that declining the position would not have helped to dispel the rumors brought against him.^[11] By appointing Clay his Secretary of State, President Adams essentially declared him heir to the Presidency, as Adams and his three predecessors had all served as Secretary of State. Jackson and his followers accused Adams and Clay of striking a "corrupt bargain". The Jacksonians would campaign on this claim for the next four years, ultimately attaining Jackson's victory in the Adams-Jackson rematch in 1828.

Results by state in House of Representatives[edit]

Electoral College selection[edit]

Caucus curs in full yell, by James Akin, 1824 (critique of "the press's treatment of Andrew Jackson, and on the practice of nominating candidates by caucus").^[13]

See also[edit]

• Corrupt Bargain
• Electoral college
• History of the United States (1789-1849)
• Inauguration of John Quincy Adams
• Realigning election
• Second Party System
• Smoke-filled room
• United States House elections, 1824

References[edit]

• "A Historical Analysis of the Electoral College". The Green Papers. Retrieved March 20, 2005. 
• Presidential Election of 1824: A Resource Guide from the Library of Congress

External links[edit]

• Election of 1824 in Counting the Votes

Navigation[edit]

State Results of the 1824 U.S. presidential election Candidates John Quincy Adams Andrew Jackson William H. Crawford Henry Clay General articles Election timeline Local results Alabama Connecticut Delaware Georgia Illinois Indiana Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Mississippi Missouri New Hampshire New Jersey New York North Carolina Ohio Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina Tennessee Vermont Virginia Other 1824 elections House Senate Gubernatorial