The election of 1828 was termed a revolution because it was unlike any of the previous presidential elections, in a number of ways. First of all, Andrew Jackson was the first president of the United States who was not from either Virginia or Massachusetts. He was not a part of the wealthy elite that had shaped the power structure of the young country previously. Unlike the previous six presidents, Jackson was from a humble background. He used his roots to gain populist support and shunned the established power structure, which was built around landholdings and wealth. In this, he became a foe of the main tool of the elite, the Bank of the United States. He also used his personality to appeal to the common man, and his campaign reflected this, with large parades and symbols of "Old Hickory" erected in every major city and many small towns.

Furthermore, the election of 1828 was revolutionary in that it saw an increase in popular democracy concerning the selection of the president. Prior to this, state legislatures selected the electors. In this election, however, 22 of the 24 states used the popular vote to select their electors. Additionally, several states removed the property requirement for voting, which opened up the vote to non-landholding white males. All this made the election of 1828 the largest, in terms of votes cast, in the country's history up to this time. As such, 1828 was in many ways a populist revolution.

Jackson's election can be seen as a revolution because it defied the mold of previous inhabitants of the White House.  The office of the Presidency had been seen in a highly refined and elitist light before Jackson.  With Jackson's ascension, a new type of leader emerged.  Jackson embodied the idea that the President reflect the people.  Jackson helped to create the reality that now governs the office in that the American voting body expects their President to be the sometimes contradictory individual who is of the people, but can also rise above them to lead in specific instances.  Jackson's election was Revolutionary because the people who elected him were not the inside elitist forces of power.  Rather, they were common individuals and of modest means.  This could be seen in Jackson's inauguration, where this modesty and almost poverty overwhelmed the proceedings and led to a fairly destructive inaugural party in the White House.  Jackson's champion of the disenfranchised was new, something that the young nation had not seen in its previous presidents.  In this, Jackson was radical in his election.