The election of 1800 was a rematch of the 1796 election between two prominent founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. Sometimes referred to as the Revolution of 1800, the election marked a regime change from the Federalist Party to the Democratic-Republican Party. It also brought attention to one of the Constitution's flaws, forcing the winner to be decided by the House of Representatives. The election resulted in the Democratic-Republican Party's domination of politics until the 1820s, the beginning of the end for the Federalist Party, and the creation of the 12th amendment.
Following the first contested election in 1796 (George Washington received unanimous electoral votes in 1789 and 1792), two political parties had developed; the Federalist Party led by John Adams and Alexander Hamilton, and the Democratic-Republican Party led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. The Federalist Party was in favor of a strong federal government, economic growth, and a friendly relationship with Great Britain. Their support was mainly garnered form the Northeast. The Democratic-Republican Party favored states' rights, opposed the financial policies of Alexander Hamilton, and supported revolutionary France. Preferring yeoman farmers over industry, the Democratic-Republican Party was strongest in the South.
The electoral process outlined in the Constitution was not written with political parties in mind. When electors cast their votes, they did not have to specify between president and vice president. The person with the highest electoral votes would be president and the runner up would be vice president. Due to this process, following the 1796 election, John Adams, a Federalist, and Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican, became president and vice president respectively (the only time president and vice president were elected from opposing tickets). This would cause an even bigger problem in the election of 1800.
Prior to the 1800 election, candidates did not run with running mates. Instead, multiple candidates would run for the same party with one being the clear favorite for president. The other candidates, although considered running mates, under the law would be considered candidates for president. So technically, Federalists were running against Federalists and Democratic-Republicans were running against Democratic-Republicans. The idea was that multiple candidates for the same party would prevent the opposing party from winning the vice presidency. Each elector was to cast two votes; both for the president. For example, if an elector was voting in favor of the Federalists in 1796, he would cast one vote for the favored president and the other for the favored vice president. Do the math. Wouldn't this mean president and vice president would tie? Yes, it would. In order to delineate between president and vice president, some electors were designated to cast their second vote for a candidate who was not favored for vice president, thus assuring that the intended vice president received less votes than the intended president. With this system, how could anything go wrong?
By the time the 1800 election rolled around, the politicians believed that they rectified the confusion. Unlike the 1796 election where eight Federalist ran and five Democratic Republicans ran, only two candidates ran from each party and they would be considered running mates. This would prevent a president and a vice president to be elected from opposing tickets. Now the electoral process was slightly simpler. Each elector would cast one vote for one running mate, and the other vote for the other. In order to ensure that the intended vice president received less votes than the intended president, one elector would abstain from their second vote. Seems like a fool proof plan.
For the election, John Adams and Charles Pinckney ran on the Federalist ticket and Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr ran on the Democratic-Republican ticket. The campaign resembled modern-day campaigns with both sides attacking one another and spreading rumors. Unfortunately for Adams, his opponents came from both the Democratic-Republicans and Federalists led by Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton wanted a president who he could better influence, so he schemed to elect Pinckey over Adams. However, his plan failed, splitting the Federalist Party, and all but ensuring a Democratic-Republican victory (had slaves not been counted with the 3/5 Compromise, Adams would have won). The Democratic-Republicans did win the election, receiving 73 electoral votes to Adams' 65. Their was only one problem. The one elector who was supposed to abstain on his vote for Burr did not abstain, causing a tie, with both Jefferson and Burr having received 73 electoral votes. Although it was clear that Jefferson was the preferred candidate for president, by law, the election had to be decided by the House of Representatives.
The House of Representatives was controlled by the Federalists. In order to prevent their main rival, Thomas Jefferson, from winning the presidency, some Federalist representatives decided to cast their votes for Burr, resulting in a tie in the first two votes. For the final, decisive vote Jefferson would find himself an unlikely ally, Alexander Hamilton. Although Jefferson was the main opponent of his party, Hamilton said Jefferson was, "by far not so dangerous a man," preferring a man with the wrong principles over a man who lacked them. Hamilton was able to change enough of the representatives' votes for Jefferson allowing for his victory. Burr was said to have attempted to buy votes in order to become president, causing a poor relationship with Jefferson. When Jefferson went up for reelection, he did not choose Burr as a running mate.
The election of 1800 showed that the young republic could survive a regime change without bloodshed. It also led to a generation of Democratic-Republican dominated politics. Due to their schism, the Federalists never again regained the power they once had, practically vanishing in 1815. The Jeffersonian Republicans, as the Democratic-Republicans were sometimes known, controlled the presidency and Congress from 1801 until 1825. Not only did the election of 1800 result in a peaceful transfer of power, it also led to the creation of the 12th Amendment. The 12th Amendment, ratified in 1804, required electors to specify their selections for president and vice president.
