POLITICS AND THE NEW

NATION

Brandon James, Nicole Pham, Michaela Thordarson

POLITICS AND THE NEW NATIONa. The Era of Good Feelings and the Two-Party System

b. The Expansion of the Vote: A White Man’s Democracyc. The Missouri Compromise

d. The 1824 Election and the “Corrupt Bargain”e. John Quincy Adams

f. Jacksonian Democracy and Modern America

A Change in Tradition• Andrew Jackson enabled voting

to be open to non-landholding white gentlemen • In the early republic before

war, ‘republicanism” was the political value. It was feared to be a threat to public order due to the downfall of traditional values of hierarchy and inequality• The Industrial Revolution

distributed wealth unequally, endangering the working class.

an era of good feelings and a two party system…

• The War of 1812 demolished the Federalist Party. The Presidential Election of 1816 finished off the last Federalist candidate; In the 1818 election, the Democratic Republicans reigned victorious, holding control of 85% of seats in Congress• James Monroe’s presidency (1817-1825) was observed as

the “Era of Good Feelings” due to the one- party dominance. However, soon this party would split into the new First Party System of Republican Federalists. • Monroe continued the policies for national economic

development through a national bank, tariffs, and federally funded internal improvements• Martin van Buren lead the Democratic party away from more

traditional leadership; He expanded them nationally and justified the democratization of American life as an embracement of the mass public opinion

Expansion of the Vote: A White Man’s Democracy• After the Revolution, “Property Requirements” that kept the

poor class from voting fell out of favor, forcing economic status to disappear. However, it did create boundaries because white women free African Americans were not included in this suffrage movement. • New Jersey abolished Property Requirements, but prevented

women and freed blacks from voting. Other states, like New York, limited freed blacks voting rights by mandating a high property requirement. • Democratization of American politics expanded the party,

while also intensifying racial discrimination and gender inequality.

The 1824 Election and the “Corrupt Bargain• The Democratic Republicans were the only candidates of the

election; Their official candidate to replace Monroe was William H. Crawford• Andrew Jackson won the popularity in the amount of electoral

votes he received

• 1824 Presidential Election• Candidate Party Electoral Votes

• Andrew Jackson Democratic-Republican 99• John Quincy Adams Democratic-Republican 84• William H. Crawford Democratic-Republican 41• Henry Clay Democratic-Republican 37

• Henry Clay led some of the strongest attacks against Jackson• Clay forged an Ohio Valley- New England coalition that

secured the White House for John Quincy Adams• Adams, in return, named Clay his secretary of state• The antagonistic presidential race (1828) began right

before Adams took office; It was referred to as a “corrupt bargain” by Jackson’s supporters• Jacksonians denounced political enemies as using

government favors to reward friends and the economically elite

The Missouri Compromise• Most white Americans agreed that western expansion would be

beneficial to the nation’s health

• Natives’ rights were irrelevant in the political world• Expansion brought slavery into the political talk

• In the debate, defenders of slavery relied on central principle of fairness

• Henry Clay played a crucial role in the brokering of the Missouri Compromise

• The Kansas- Nebraska Act (1854) determined that new

states north of boundary deserved to be able to

exercise sovereignty in favor of slavery if they choose

• Denmark Vesey, a free black man in Charleston, South

Carolina, made a huge stand about white disagreement

on the topic of slavery in the future of the west

• The rebellion was soon discovered and it resulted in the

execution of 35 organizers and the destruction of

Vesey’s church

• The Nat Turner’s Virginia Slave Revolt would soon be

one of the most destructive black actions to soon follow

Nat Turner’s Rebellion

John Quincy

Adams

John Quincy Adams· Adams commitment to his principles proved to be disadvantageous in a

presidential election.

· Adams favored federal involvement in economics. He supported the American System and ventured for a publicly-funded university and investment in scientific research and exploration.

· Dangers of a democracy were publicly disclosed by Adams; This made him highly unpopular among politicians of which he claimed abided by the “will of the constituents.”

· Although Adams’ ideals were eminent, he came off to the people as an elitist. o He refused to campaign for his election, as if it were a popularity contest,

he believed it should not stray away from the prerogative of service.

o He stated that if the country wanted his services, “she must ask for them.”

· Adams’ unpopularity led to his defeat in the 1828 election; although he accomplished some impressive things, his devotion to moral over popularity cost him a good portion of political backing

Jacksonian Democracy and Modern American

• Jackson won the election of 1828 with almost 70% of electoral votes• His political message generally remained the same; he

believed the country was corrupted by “special privilege”, mainly referring to the policies of the Second National Bank • Jackson won the common people through his appeal as

a common man who became a successful planter, and one who had served his time in the Revolutionary War• Jackson came to be the “Champion of the Common

Man” and his Jacksonian movement became quite popular

• Van Buren asssisted in the creation of a new political party abiding by the following 3 principles:1. Party of workers and farmers2. oppositon of special privileges 3. Westward Expansion• The Whigs arose to challenge the Democrats• The Whig Party favored government support for economic

development, while Democrats fought against the dependence it created• The campaigns between these two competitor became

known as the Two Party System • The Jacksonian Democracy entered the country into a

social change as well; It brought about what would be one of the nation’s largest controversies as Jackson’s input always cast toward the benefit of the white man

Bibliography

• "Revolution and the New Nation (1754-1820s)." Revolution and the New Nation (1754-1820s). Http://americanhistory.si.edu/presidency/timeline/pres_era/3_654.html, n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2015.

• Ushistory.org

•  http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/presidential-election-goes-to-the-house

• http://www.history.com/topics/missouri-compromise