The Corrupt Bargain
There were four candidates for president in 1824. All four were members of the old Republican Party. However, each had support in different parts of the country. John Quincy Adams was strong in New England. Henry Clay and Andrew Jackson had support in the West. William H. Crawford was favored in the South, but became too ill to campaign.
The Candidates John Quincy Adams of Massachusetts was the son of Abigail and John Adams, the second president. A graduate of Harvard University, the younger Adams had served as Secretary of State and helped end the War of 1812. People admired Adams for his intelligence and high morals. Adams, however, was uncomfortable campaigning among the common people. In fact, to most people he seemed hard and cold.
A Kentuckian, Henry Clay was a shrewd politician who became Speaker of the House of Representatives. In Congress, Clay was a skillful negotiator who had worked out several important compromises. Despite his abilities, Clay was less popular than the other candidate from the West, Andrew Jackson.
William H. Crawford had served as Treasury Secretary, War Secretary, Ambassador to France after the War of 1812, and as a senator from Georgia. Crawford's support was concentrated in the Southeast.
To many Americans, especially on the western frontier, Andrew Jackson was a hero. A general during the War of 1812, he had defeated the British and a group of Creek Indians who were allied with the British. He had gone on to defeat the Seminoles and the Spanish in Florida, gaining that territory for the United States. He was known as the “Hero of New Orleans” for his victory in the War of 1812. He also earned the nickname “Old Hickory” after a soldier said he was “tough as hickory.” Jackson’s fame as a general helped him launch a political career. Although he was a landowner and a slave owner, many saw him as a man of the people. Jackson had been born in a log cabin, and his parents had been poor farmers. He was admired by small farmers and others who felt left out of the growing economy in the United States. The expansion of the vote to white men without property helped account for Jackson’s political popularity.
The “Corrupt Bargain” No clear winner emerged from the election of 1824. Jackson won the popular vote, but no candidate won a majority, or more than half, of the electoral votes. As a result, under the provisions of the Constitution, the House of Representatives had to choose the president from among the top three candidates. Because he had finished fourth, Clay was out of the running. As Speaker of the House, though, he played an important role in influencing the results and reaching a compromise to settle the conflict.
Clay urged members of the House to vote for Adams. Clay’s support was enough for Adams to win the vote in the House. After he became president, Adams named Clay his Secretary of State. In the past, Secretaries of State had gone on to become president. Jackson and his backers were furious. They accused Adams and Clay of making a “corrupt bargain” and stealing the election from Jackson. In fact, the election was decided based on provisions of the Constitution. Still, the anger of Jackson and his supporters seriously hampered President Adams’s efforts to unify the nation.
The Candidates John Quincy Adams of Massachusetts was the son of Abigail and John Adams, the second president. A graduate of Harvard University, the younger Adams had served as Secretary of State and helped end the War of 1812. People admired Adams for his intelligence and high morals. Adams, however, was uncomfortable campaigning among the common people. In fact, to most people he seemed hard and cold.
A Kentuckian, Henry Clay was a shrewd politician who became Speaker of the House of Representatives. In Congress, Clay was a skillful negotiator who had worked out several important compromises. Despite his abilities, Clay was less popular than the other candidate from the West, Andrew Jackson.
William H. Crawford had served as Treasury Secretary, War Secretary, Ambassador to France after the War of 1812, and as a senator from Georgia. Crawford's support was concentrated in the Southeast.
To many Americans, especially on the western frontier, Andrew Jackson was a hero. A general during the War of 1812, he had defeated the British and a group of Creek Indians who were allied with the British. He had gone on to defeat the Seminoles and the Spanish in Florida, gaining that territory for the United States. He was known as the “Hero of New Orleans” for his victory in the War of 1812. He also earned the nickname “Old Hickory” after a soldier said he was “tough as hickory.” Jackson’s fame as a general helped him launch a political career. Although he was a landowner and a slave owner, many saw him as a man of the people. Jackson had been born in a log cabin, and his parents had been poor farmers. He was admired by small farmers and others who felt left out of the growing economy in the United States. The expansion of the vote to white men without property helped account for Jackson’s political popularity.
The “Corrupt Bargain” No clear winner emerged from the election of 1824. Jackson won the popular vote, but no candidate won a majority, or more than half, of the electoral votes. As a result, under the provisions of the Constitution, the House of Representatives had to choose the president from among the top three candidates. Because he had finished fourth, Clay was out of the running. As Speaker of the House, though, he played an important role in influencing the results and reaching a compromise to settle the conflict.
Clay urged members of the House to vote for Adams. Clay’s support was enough for Adams to win the vote in the House. After he became president, Adams named Clay his Secretary of State. In the past, Secretaries of State had gone on to become president. Jackson and his backers were furious. They accused Adams and Clay of making a “corrupt bargain” and stealing the election from Jackson. In fact, the election was decided based on provisions of the Constitution. Still, the anger of Jackson and his supporters seriously hampered President Adams’s efforts to unify the nation.
The Election of 1824
Party at the White House
As Jackson traveled to Washington to be inaugurated, large crowds cheered him along the way. For the first time, thousands of ordinary people flooded the capital to watch the President take the oath of office. After Jackson was sworn in, the crowd followed the new president to a reception at the White House. One onlooker described the scene with amazement:
The crowds were so huge, the observer continued, that the President was “almost suffocated and torn to pieces by the people in their eagerness to shake hands.” Jackson’s critics said the scene showed that “King Mob” was ruling the nation. Amos Kendall, a loyal Jackson supporter, viewed the inauguration celebration in a more positive way: “It was a proud day for the people. General Jackson is their own President.”
