Andrew Jackson's Presidency

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Andrew Jackson's 1828 Presidential Election: Factors and Significance

Summary:

Andrew Jackson's 1828 presidential election was significant due to his appeal as a "common man's" candidate, contrasting with the elite political background of his predecessors. Factors leading to his victory included his portrayal as an outsider, popular dissatisfaction with the perceived "Corrupt Bargain" of 1824, and expanding suffrage that allowed more white men to vote. This election marked a shift towards more democratic participation and the rise of two-party politics with the Democrats and Whigs.

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What factors led to Andrew Jackson's 1828 election?

One key factor that led to the election of Andrew Jackson in 1828 was Jackson’s campaign strategy. Jackson had effectively positioned himself as the candidate of the people. He portrayed himself as the antithesis of the typical politician who lived in the Northeast. Jackson was born in South Carolina and lived in Tennessee. He didn’t come from a moneyed family. His parents were immigrants from Ireland. Jackson harnessed these biographical details to create a story in which he was the candidate best suited to represent the everyday person.

While Jackson’s opponents tried to use his lack of political experience against him, Jackson flipped the critique into a positive. His distance from politics, coupled with his military service, reinforced the trope that he was not another typical politician. Jackson used his unique resume to make it seem like if he was elected, it would not be business as usual in Washington, D.C., since Jackson was not the usual candidate.

Jackson’s opponents, however indirectly, helped bolster his claim that he was the honest person’s candidate due to their conduct during the 1824 presidential election. Four years ago, Jackson won the popular vote and the most amount of electoral votes. Yet since Jackson didn’t win the majority of the electoral votes (he was running against three other people), the House of Representatives took matters into their own hands and chose John Quincy Adams. Such machinations furthered Jackson’s argument that the federal government was corrupt and required an outsider like him to make it honorable again.

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What factors contributed to Jackson's victory in the 1828 election?

One of the significant factors that allowed Andrew Jackson to win the presidential election of 1828 was that he was running against just one other candidate: incumbent John Quincy Adams. In many ways, this election was seen as a rematch of the previous election between Jackson and Adams. In 1824, Adams won the presidency by the decision of the House of Representatives when no candidate won a majority of votes. This occurred even though Jackson had won more votes than Adams, leaving Jackson's supporters eager to correct this perceived error in 1828.

In 1828, with only the two candidates in the running, it was easy for Jackson to win a clear majority of the electoral votes. With a consolidated base, including the endorsement of incumbent Vice President John C. Calhoun and the entire Democratic Party, Jackson was able to form a coalition of support that Adams was unable to effectively compete with.

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What was the significance of Andrew Jackson's 1828 presidential election?

Something that is very important about Andrew Jackson's presidential election is that he was a common man. He was not raised in a wealthy household and worked very hard to educate himself in law. This marks a great deal of importance because he was more representative of the everyday man.

He was a very proud man who would just about anything to hold up his good name.

Another important aspect about the presidency of Andrew Jackson is that two official parties grew during this time period-the democrats and the whigs. Andrew jackson was a democrat. This marks a very important part of American history.

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What was the significance of Andrew Jackson's 1828 presidential election?

Everything the previous answers say is true, but let me try to put the answer a bit more simply.  I am hoping this will help you see the major point more clearly.

Jackson's election is usually called a triumph for the common American.  Jackson was the first president to be born to a poor family.  Before him, all the presidents had been from the rich elite.

This is important because America was becoming more democratic in the 1820s.  By the end of this decade, practically all white men over 21 were allowed to vote.  Before, only those with some amount of property (it varied by state) had been allowed to vote.

So Jackson's election is significant because it showed how democratic the US was becoming.

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What was the significance of Andrew Jackson's 1828 presidential election?

The emergence of Jackson in the election of 1828 was significant because of his posture as "the common man's" candidate.  Jackson was one of the first Presidents elected who did not have the Federalist pedigree of prior candidates.  At the same time, he did not possess the "insider" status of his opponent John Quincy Adams.  The outsider status that was conferred upon Jackson was highlighted by the large extent of "dirty politics" which emerged through the campaign.  Jackson made claims, valid or invalid depending on partisanship, of the misuse of political funds.  Adams and his associates made claims towards Jackson's fidelity in marriage, and a ruthless temper during his time as a commander in the Army.  A truly excellent example of what modern politics would bring to American Discourse, the election of Jackson proved that the dialogue of popular sovereignty and other principles of the Constitution that permeated beliefs no more than 50 years prior would forever be dragged through the sewage of the modern swamp of politics.

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What factors led to Andrew Jackson's presidential election?

Jackson was successfully able to exploit a growing strain of populist sentiment in the United States and harness it for his own political gain. In 1828, there was a widespread perception in the country that the "little guy" was being stiffed by political and economic elites. The so-called Corrupt Bargain that had deprived Jackson of the presidency in 1824 was held up as a prime example of this.

It seemed to many, especially in the agrarian heartlands of the South, that the country was being run exclusively for the benefit of the elite and that the ordinary folk were being left behind. Jackson, despite being a wealthy landowner, was able to put himself forward as the champion of the common man, playing up his humble origins to show that he was a true man of the people who would take back the country from the East Coast elites.

As the country had expanded, so too had the franchise, ushering in a period of mass politics in which it was foolish in the extreme for political parties to cater exclusively to a self-selecting elite. In this new age of democracy, this age of the common man, Jackson was best placed to take advantage of developing social trends, putting together an electoral coalition of landowners, farmers, and small businessmen that proved unbeatable in 1828 and again in 1832.

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What factors led to Andrew Jackson's presidential election?

There are several reasons why Andrew Jackson got elected as President in 1828. One factor was his determination and his persistence. Andrew Jackson believed he had the election of 1824 stolen from him. He had received more electoral votes than any other candidate but not a majority of the electoral votes. He believed a deal was made by Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams to swing the election to John Quincy Adams. This deal, called the Corrupt Bargain, allowed Henry Clay to become the Secretary of State if his supporters would vote for John Quincy Adams. Andrew Jackson was extremely determined to win the next election after these events unfolded in the election of 1824.

In his one term as President, John Quincy Adams had a very difficult time with Congress. John Quincy Adams began to support ideas that the old Federalist Party had supported. These ideas were contrary to what the Democratic-Republicans believed. For example, John Quincy Adams wanted a stronger federal government. The Democratic-Republicans didn’t want the federal government to be too strong. Thus, John Quincy Adams didn’t have much support in the election of 1828. Andrew Jackson won that election easily.

There was another factor that helped Andrew Jackson win the election of 1828. Between 1800-1828 changes were being made to our political system allowing more people to vote. The property requirement was being dropped as a qualification for voting. This allowed more and more common people to vote. Jackson portrayed himself as a common man. With more common men voting, Jackson got more votes.

There were several factors that helped Andrew Jackson win the election of 1828, making him President of the United States.

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