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168-425: Opponents of the act argued that there was no need to expand the federal judiciary; that the judicial appointments were intended to cement Federalist Party control of the judiciary; and that appointments were rushed (hence they were stigmatized as "midnight appointments"). The act was repealed by the incoming Thomas Jefferson administration . It represented an effort to solve an issue in the U.S. Supreme Court during

336-530: A filibuster to conquer Mexico. At the very least, there were reports of Burr's recruiting men, stocking arms, and building boats. New Orleans seemed especially vulnerable, but at some point, the American general there, James Wilkinson , a double agent for the Spanish, decided to turn on Burr. Jefferson issued a proclamation warning that there were U.S. citizens illegally plotting to take over Spanish holdings. Though Burr

504-601: A competent officer engineering corps that would not have to rely on foreign sources for top grade engineers. An academy would also help to replace many of the Federalist officers whom Jefferson dismissed when he took office. Jefferson signed the Military Peace Establishment Act on March 16, 1802, thus founding the United States Military Academy at West Point. The Act documented in 29 sections

672-581: A few documents Burr had requested having invoked executive privilege . Jefferson refused to appear at Burr's trial. The weak government case led to Burr's acquittal, but with his reputation ruined he was never able to mount another adventure. Burr later died on his Staten Island residence in October 1836. After early 1802, when he learned that Napoleon intended to regain a foothold in Saint-Domingue and Louisiana, Jefferson proclaimed neutrality in relation to

840-518: A frenzied letter-writing campaign to get Federalist Representatives to switch votes. He urged the Federalists to support Jefferson because he was "by far not so dangerous a man" as Burr; in short, he would much rather have someone with wrong principles than someone devoid of any. From February 11 to 17, the House cast a total of 35 ballots; each time eight state delegations voted for Jefferson, one short of

1008-470: A law to ban it. He denounced the trade as "violations of human rights which have been so long continued on the unoffending inhabitants of Africa, in which the morality, the reputation, and the best interests of our country have long been eager to proscribe." Jefferson signed the new law and the international trade became illegal in January 1808. The legal trade had averaged 14,000 slaves a year; illegal smuggling at

1176-583: A new set of laws and limits for the military. In reaction to the Electoral College tie between Jefferson and Burr in 1800, Congress approved an amendment to the Constitution providing a new procedure for electing the president and vice president, and submitted it to the states for ratification in December 1803. The Twelfth Amendment was ratified by the requisite number of states (then 13) to become part of

1344-421: A particular party or candidate. Newspapers are also the main source of voting records in the early 19th century, and frontier states such as Tennessee had few in operation, without any known surviving examples. Below are the surviving popular vote figures as published in A New Nation Votes. Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, and Tennessee chose each of their electors from specially-drawn single-member districts,

1512-617: A philosophy that historians would later call Jeffersonian democracy , which was marked by his belief in agrarianism and strict limits on the national government . In a world in which few believed in democracy or egalitarianism, Jefferson's belief in political equality stood out from many of the other Founding Fathers of the United States , who continued to believe that the rich and powerful should lead society. Under pressure from Jeffersonian Republicans, states achieved greater suffrage by eliminating property requirements. Expanding suffrage and

1680-592: A provision of the United States Constitution, a tie in a case of this type had to be resolved by the House of Representatives , with each state casting one vote. Although the congressional election of 1800 turned over majority control of the House of Representatives to the Democratic-Republicans by 68 seats to 38, the presidential election had to be decided by the outgoing House that had been elected in

1848-456: A provision preventing Congress from enacting a law banning the importation of slaves until 1808. In the years before Jefferson took office, the growing fear of slave rebellions led to diminished enthusiasm in the South for the abolition of slavery, and many states began to enact Black Codes designed to restrict the behavior of free blacks. During his presidential term, Jefferson was disappointed that

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2016-585: A re-established French colonial empire in North America threatened to reignite the tensions of the recently concluded Quasi-War . He initially planned to re-establish a French empire in the Americas centered around New Orleans and Saint-Domingue , a sugar-producing Caribbean island in the midst of a slave revolution . One army was sent to Saint-Domingue, and a second army began preparing to travel to New Orleans. After French forces in Saint-Domingue were defeated by

2184-461: A reflection of his own belief in egalitarianism, Jefferson broke with many of the precedents set by Adams and Washington. Jefferson accepted visitors without regard to social status, discontinued the practice of delivering speeches to Congress in person, and enforced a less formal protocol at White House events. In reaction to the expansion of the franchise, even Federalists began to adopt partisan techniques, such as party organization, newspapers, and

2352-560: A republic of yeoman farmers. By the time Jefferson took office, Americans had settled as far west as the Mississippi River , though vast pockets of land remained vacant or inhabited only by Native Americans . Many in the United States, particularly those in the west, favored further territorial expansion, and especially hoped to annex the Spanish province of Louisiana . Given Spain's sparse presence in Louisiana, Jefferson believed that it

2520-436: A result, there was little change in the federal government during the transition between Washington and Adams, the first presidential transition in U.S. history. With Jefferson's election in 1800, there was a transfer of power between parties, not simply a transition between presidents. As president, Jefferson had the power of appointment to fill many government positions that had long been held by Federalists. Jefferson resisted

2688-763: A state unrepresented on the Court, Jefferson selected William Johnson , a young attorney who had previously served as an appellate judge in South Carolina. After the death of William Paterson in 1806, Jefferson appointed Henry Brockholst Livingston , a justice of the New York Supreme Court . After Congress added another seat to the Supreme Court with the Seventh Circuit Act of 1807 , Jefferson asked individual members of Congress for their recommendations on filling

2856-582: A third term, the Federalists and Adams regarded himself as next-in-line. Hamilton appears to have hoped in 1796 that his influence within an Adams administration would be as great as or greater than in Washington's. By 1800, Hamilton had come to realize that Adams was too independent and thought the Federalist vice presidential candidate, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney of South Carolina, more suited to serving Hamilton's interests. In his third sabotage attempt toward Adams, Hamilton quietly schemed to elect Pinckney to

3024-534: A ticket consisting of Jefferson and Aaron Burr , while the Federalists nominated a ticket consisting of Adams and Charles C. Pinckney . Each party formed a plan by which one of their respective electors would vote for a third candidate or abstain so that its preferred presidential candidate (Adams for the Federalists and Jefferson for the Democratic-Republicans) would win one more vote than the party's other nominee. The chief political issues revolved around

3192-502: A tie, known as the Burr dilemma . It necessitated a contingent election in the House of Representatives . Under the terms laid out in the Constitution , the outgoing House of Representatives chose between Jefferson and Burr. Burr was accused of campaigning for the presidency himself in the contingent election despite being a member of Jefferson's party. Each state delegation cast one vote, and

3360-408: A tie, the House of Representatives, which was dominated by Federalists and led by Alexander Hamilton, eventually decided the election in favor of Thomas Jefferson. Democratic-Republicans also won control of the legislative branch of government after the congressional elections. Jefferson was inaugurated on March 4, 1801 without the presence of Adams. Jefferson's inaugural address attempted to appease

3528-439: A victory in the contingent election required one candidate to win a majority of the state delegations. Neither Burr nor Jefferson was able to win on the first 35 ballots of the contingent election, as most Federalist representatives backed Burr and all Democratic-Republican representatives backed Jefferson. Hamilton favored Jefferson over Burr, and he convinced several Federalists to switch their support to Jefferson, giving Jefferson

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3696-515: A victory on the 36th ballot. Jefferson became the second consecutive incumbent vice president to be elected president. This is one of two presidential elections (along with the 1824 election ) that have been decided in the House. Both parties used congressional nominating caucuses to formally nominate tickets for the first time. The Federalists nominated a ticket consisting of incumbent President John Adams of Massachusetts and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney of South Carolina . Pinckney had fought in

3864-407: A wealth of scientific and geographical knowledge of the vast territory, along with knowledge of the many Indian tribes. Two months after the expedition's end, Jefferson made his first public statement to Congress giving a one sentence summary about its success before asserting the justification for the expenses involved. The American Philosophical Society ultimately became the repository for many of

4032-470: Is credited by some historians with inventing the modern electioneering process. Yet, throughout this entire process, the candidates themselves were conspicuously missing from the campaigning, at least publicly, due to fears that they may otherwise be tagged as "demagogues". Even a visit John Adams made to Washington was made into a public point of contention. Partisans on both sides sought any advantage they could find. In several states, this included changing

4200-508: Is divided into two electoral districts and half the electors are chosen from each district. In the 2015 musical Hamilton by Lin Manuel Miranda , the contest between Jefferson and Burr is recounted in " The Election of 1800 ". The song focuses on Alexander Hamilton 's role in deciding the outcome of the 1801 contingent election. The musical simplifies the complicated multiple elections somewhat, portraying Adams's unpopularity as making

4368-623: The 1796 election . Under the rules of the electoral system in place before the 1804 ratification of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution , each member of the Electoral College cast two votes, with no distinction made between electoral votes for president and electoral votes for vice president. As Jefferson received the second-most votes in 1796, he was elected vice president. In 1800, unlike in 1796, both parties formally nominated tickets. The Democratic-Republicans nominated

4536-599: The Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves the following year. Rising tensions between the United States and Britain dominated the final years of Jefferson's second term, as the Royal Navy began impressing sailors from American ships and attacking American shipping. Jefferson rejected war and instead used economic threats and embargoes that ultimately hurt the U.S. more than Britain. The disputes with Britain continued after Jefferson left office, eventually leading to

4704-696: The Alien and Sedition Acts and Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions . The campaign leading up to this election and the election itself revealed sharp divisions within the Federalist Party. Alexander Hamilton and the extreme Federalists attacked Adams for his persistence for peace with France, his opposition to building an army, and his failure to enforce the Alien and Sedition Acts. The results of this election favored Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr over Adams, but both Jefferson and Burr got 73 electoral votes. Presented with

4872-503: The American Revolutionary War and later served as the minister to France . The Democratic-Republicans nominated a ticket consisting of Vice President Thomas Jefferson of Virginia and former Senator Aaron Burr of New York . Jefferson had been the runner-up in the previous election and had co-founded the party with James Madison and others, while Burr was popular in the electorally important state of New York. While

5040-617: The American South . Historian Tim Matthewson notes that Jefferson "acquiesced in southern policy, the embargo of trade and nonrecognition, the defense of slavery internally and the denigration of Haiti abroad." According to the historian George Herring, "the Florida diplomacy reveals him [Jefferson] at his worst. His lust for land trumped his concern for principle." Jefferson's non-recognition of Haiti did little to advance his goal of acquiring East Florida and West Florida , which remained under

5208-769: The Dunbar and Hunter Expedition on the Ouachita River , Thomas Freeman and Peter Custis led the Red River Expedition , and Zebulon Pike led the Pike Expedition into the Rocky Mountains and the Southwest. All of the exploration expeditions sent out under Jefferson's presidency produced valuable information about the American frontier. Jefferson strongly felt the need for a national military university that could produce

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5376-468: The Federalist Party candidate and incumbent, President John Adams . The election was a political realignment that ushered in a generation of Democratic-Republican leadership. This was the first presidential election in American history to be a rematch. It was also the first election in American history where an incumbent president did not win re-election. Adams had narrowly defeated Jefferson in

5544-694: The General Assembly was split, with the Democratic-Republican-dominated House wishing to retain the general ticket and the Federalist-controlled Senate wishing to return to the district system, hoping to win at least some electoral votes. Eventually, this deadlock was broken by a last-minute compromise between the chambers that gave the Democratic-Republican eight electors and the Federalists seven. In New York,

5712-476: The Haitian Revolution . The U.S. allowed war contraband to "continue to flow to the blacks through usual U.S. merchant channels and the administration would refuse all French requests for assistance, credits, or loans." The "geopolitical and commercial implications" of Napoleon's plans outweighed Jefferson's fears of a slave-led nation. After the rebels in Saint-Domingue proclaimed independence from France in

5880-552: The Northwest Territory . Thomas Jefferson envisioned America as the force behind a great "Empire of Liberty", that would promote republicanism and counter British imperialism. The Louisiana Purchase of 1803, made by Jefferson in a $ 15 million deal with Napoleon Bonaparte , doubled the size of the growing nation by adding a huge swath of territory west of the Mississippi River, opening up millions of new farm sites for

6048-486: The Pacific Northwest . During his second term, Jefferson's attention was focused on the trial of then former Vice President Aaron Burr for treason, which resulted in an acquittal, and on the issue of slavery, specifically the importation of slaves from abroad. In 1806, he denounced the international slave trade as a "violation of human rights" and called upon Congress to criminalize it. Congress responded by approving

6216-469: The Senate quickly ratified the treaty, and the House immediately authorized funding. The purchase, concluded in December 1803, marked the end of French ambitions in North America and ensured American control of the Mississippi River. The Louisiana Purchase nearly doubled the size of the United States, and Treasury Secretary Gallatin was forced to borrow from foreign banks to finance the payment to France. Though

6384-562: The United States Navy . By the end of the 1790s, the United States had concluded treaties with all of the Barbary States, but weeks before Jefferson took office Tripoli began attacking American merchant ships in an attempt to extract further tribute. Jefferson was reluctant to become involved in any kind of international conflict, but he believed that force would best deter the Barbary States from demanding further tribute. He ordered

6552-531: The War of 1812 . Despite the economic and political troubles caused by naval tensions with Britain, Jefferson was succeeded by his preferred successor in the form of James Madison . His legacy remained highly influential until the American Civil War, but his reputation has ebbed and flowed since then. Nonetheless, in surveys of academic historians and political scientists, Jefferson is consistently ranked as one of

6720-512: The Yazoo land scandal , Georgia had engaged in a massive real estate fraud by selling large tracts of Yazoo land before passing a law retroactively invalidating the grants. With the Compact of 1802 , the federal government purchased western Georgia (now the states of Alabama and Mississippi ), agreed to seek to extinguish all Native American claims in the region, and also agreed to settle all claims against

6888-403: The congressional election of 1798 (at that time, the new presidential and congressional terms all started on March 4 of the year after a national election). In the outgoing House, the Federalists retained a majority of 60 seats to 46. When the electoral ballots were opened and counted on February 11, 1801, the certificate of election from Georgia was different than the others. Georgia had sent

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7056-613: The lame duck Adams, to the outrage of the Democratic-Republicans, at the last minute appointed many federal judges (mostly belonging to the Federalist Party) to fill positions created by the Judiciary Act of 1801 . These would be dubbed "midnight judges". Jefferson denounced this action. Jefferson's first inauguration, on March 4, 1801, was the first to be held in the nation's new capital, Washington, D.C. That morning an artillery company on Capitol Hill had fired shots to welcome

7224-548: The national bank , Gallatin persuaded Jefferson to retain the First Bank of the United States . With the repeal of the Federalist program, many Americans had little contact with the federal government, with the exception of the postal service . Jefferson's ultimate goal was to abolish the national debt, which he believed to be inherently dangerous and immoral. Though Gallatin and Jefferson did not find as much Federalist governmental waste as they had expected, their fiscal cuts and

7392-863: The 155 counties and independent cities making returns, Jefferson and Burr won in 115 (74.19%), whereas the Adams ticket carried 40 (25.81%). This was the last time that Vermont voted for the Federalists and the last time a Federalist won electoral votes from Pennsylvania. This was the first of two elections contested between people who would at some point serve as Vice President, the other being 1968 . Source (Popular Vote): A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825 Source (Electoral Vote): "Electoral College Box Scores 1789–1996" . National Archives and Records Administration . Retrieved July 30, 2005 . Votes for Federalist electors have been assigned to John Adams and votes for Democratic-Republican electors have been assigned to Thomas Jefferson. Only 6 of

7560-533: The 16 states chose electors by any form of popular vote. Those states that did choose electors by popular vote had widely varying restrictions on suffrage via property requirements. Eight votes were cast for electors pledged to both Adams and Jefferson; 2 votes were cast for electors of unknown affiliation. Source: "Tally of Electoral Votes for the 1800 Presidential Election, February 11, 1801" . The Center for Legislative Archives . National Archives. August 15, 2016 . Retrieved February 15, 2018 . Of

7728-406: The 16 states that took part in the 1800 election, six (Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Virginia) used some kind of popular vote. In Rhode Island and Virginia, voters elected their state's entire Electoral College delegation at large; Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, and Tennessee all used some variation of single-member districts. In the rest, electors were chosen by

7896-530: The 174 electoral votes. Jefferson, who believed that incumbents should not serve indefinitely, followed the two-term tradition precedent established by Washington, and declined to seek a third term. Instead, he endorsed his advisor and friend James Madison for the presidency. Jefferson's assertive foreign policy created intra-party criticism from the tertium quids , led by Randolph. Randolph and other powerful Democratic-Republican leaders opposed to Madison, including Samuel Smith and William Duane , rallied around

8064-545: The 176 electoral votes in the 1808 election. 1800 United States presidential election John Adams Federalist Thomas Jefferson Democratic-Republican Presidential elections were held in the United States from October 31 to December 3, 1800. In what is sometimes called the " Revolution of 1800 ", the Democratic-Republican Party candidate, Vice President Thomas Jefferson , defeated

8232-455: The 1800 election was a re-match of the 1796 election , it ushered in a new type of American politics, a two-party republic and acrimonious campaigning behind the scenes and through the press. On top of this, the election pitted the "larger than life" Adams and Jefferson, who were formerly close allies turned political enemies. The campaign was bitter and characterized by slander and personal attacks on both sides. Federalists spread rumors that

8400-562: The Alien and Sedition Acts and pardoned all ten individuals who had been prosecuted under the acts. He also began dismantling Hamilton's fiscal system with help from Secretary of the Treasury Gallatin. Jefferson's administration eliminated the whiskey excise and other taxes after closing "unnecessary offices" and cutting "useless establishments and expenses". After the repeal of these taxes, over 90 percent of federal revenue came from import duties. Despite Jefferson's earlier opposition to

8568-480: The American territory. The raids became a major cause of the later War of 1812 . In the 1790s, many anti-slavery leaders had come to believe that the institution of slavery would become extinct in the United States in the foreseeable future. These hopes lay in part on the enthusiasm for the abolition of slavery in the North, and in the decline of the importation of slaves throughout the South. The Constitution had included

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8736-510: The Barbary pirates by the naval and diplomatic influence of Great Britain, but that protection came to end after the colonies won their independence. In 1794, in reaction to the attacks, Congress had passed a law to authorize the payment of tribute to the Barbary States. At the same time, Congress passed the Naval Act of 1794 , which initiated construction on six frigates that became the foundation of

8904-532: The British Royal Navy seized hundreds of American ships and impressed 6,000 sailors from them, angering Americans. The British began to enforce a blockade of Europe, ending their policy of tolerance towards American shipping. Though the British returned many seized American goods that had not been intended for French ports, the British blockade badly affected American commerce and provoked immense anger throughout

9072-684: The British sought to restrict trade with the French, they had largely tolerated U.S. trade with mainland France and French colonies after the signing of the Jay Treaty in 1794. Jefferson favored a policy of neutrality in the European wars, and was strongly committed to the principle of freedom of navigation for neutral vessels, including American ships. Early in his tenure, Jefferson was able to maintain cordial relations with both France and Britain, but relations with Britain deteriorated after 1805. Needing sailors,

9240-511: The Constitution in June 1804. The president had no role in the process. One new state, Ohio , was admitted to the Union while Jefferson was in office. The exact date upon which Ohio became a state is unclear. On April 30, 1802, the 7th Congress had passed an act "authorizing the inhabitants of Ohio to form a Constitution and state government, and admission of Ohio into the Union." On February 19, 1803,

9408-538: The Constitution. "High Federalists" considered Adams too moderate and would have preferred the leadership of Alexander Hamilton instead. Hamilton had apparently grown impatient with Adams and wanted a new president who was more receptive to his goals. During Washington's presidency, Hamilton had been able to influence the federal response to the Whiskey Rebellion (which threatened the government's power to tax citizens). When Washington announced that he would not seek

9576-637: The Corps of Discovery, consisting of about 40 men, departed from St. Louis and traveled up the Missouri River . Guided by Sacagawea and various Native American tribes along the way, the expedition, traveling on the Columbia River , reached the Pacific Ocean by November 1805. After the winter thaw the expedition began their return trip on March 22, 1806, and returned to St. Louis on September 23 that year, adding

9744-405: The Court, but, with the partial exception of Johnson, his Supreme Court appointments tended to support Marshall's decisions. Jefferson also appointed seven United States circuit court judges and nine United States district court judges. Many Federalists hoped that society would remain largely as it had been during the colonial era , but Jefferson wanted to upend the social order. He advocated

9912-446: The Democratic-Republicans accused Federalists of subverting republican principles with the Alien and Sedition Acts , some of which were later declared unconstitutional after their expiration by the Supreme Court, and relying for their support on foreign immigrants ; they also accused Federalists of favoring Britain and the other coalition countries in their war with France in order to promote aristocratic, anti-democratic values. Adams

10080-517: The Democratic-Republicans in 1796, made gains in Maryland, and picked up Burr's home state of New York. In the six states choosing electors by some form of popular vote, they won a landslide over Adams and Pinckney, polling 15,846 more votes than the Federalist ticket. Adams made gains in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, but these votes were not enough to offset the Democratic-Republican gains elsewhere. Of

10248-513: The Democratic-Republicans were radical atheists who would ruin the country (based on the Democratic-Republican support for the French Revolution ). In 1798, George Washington had complained "that you could as soon scrub the blackamoor white , as to change the principles of a professed Democrat; and that he will leave nothing unattempted to overturn the Government of this Country". Meanwhile,

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10416-455: The District of Columbia. When the newly appointed Secretary of State James Madison refused to process Marbury's selection, Marbury requested a writ of mandamus , which would force Madison to make his appointment official. Chief Justice John Marshall declared that the Supreme Court did not have the authority to force Madison to make the appointment official. This statement actually challenged

10584-402: The Federalist Party had been "completely and irrevocably abandoned....it never can and never will be revived." As Jefferson's presidency continued, Adams's prediction proved accurate, and the Federalists struggled to compete outside of New England. Much of Jefferson's early agenda focused on undoing the Federalist program of the 1790s. Upon taking office, he repealed the remaining provisions of

10752-428: The Federalist program of the 1790s. His administration reduced taxes, government spending, and the national debt, and repealed the Alien and Sedition Acts . In foreign affairs, the major developments were the acquisition of the gigantic Louisiana Purchase from France in 1803, an embargo against trade with both Great Britain and France, and worsening relations with Britain as the United States tried to remain neutral in

10920-576: The Federalists by promising to maintain the strength of the federal government and to pay off the national debt. Jefferson spoke of dangerous "entangling alliances" with foreign countries as President George Washington had done before him, and made a plea for national unity claiming that "we are all republicans and we are all federalists." Once in office, Jefferson set out to rescind the Judiciary Act of 1801 and remove newly appointed Federalists. The implications of Adams's actions in appointing Federalists to

11088-596: The Federalists of being secret monarchists, while the Federalists charged that Jefferson was a godless libertine in thrall to the French. Under the election system in place at the time, the members of the Electoral College were permitted to vote for two names for president; any tie would be decided in a contingent election in the United States House of Representatives . Jefferson and Burr each received 73 electoral votes, while Adams finished in third place with 65 votes. The House of Representatives, still controlled by

11256-533: The Federalists, held a contingent election in February 1801 to decide whether Jefferson or Burr would accede to the presidency. Though some Federalists preferred Burr, Federalist leader Alexander Hamilton strongly preferred Jefferson. On the thirty-sixth ballot of the contingent election, enough Federalist congressmen abstained from the vote to allow Jefferson to win the presidency. Jefferson regarded his victory as "America's Second Revolution," and he hoped to transform

11424-631: The French began to seize ships trading with the British, leaving American shipping vulnerable to attacks by both of the major naval powers. In response to attacks on American shipping, Congress passed the Embargo Act in 1807, which was designed to force Britain and France into respecting U.S. neutrality by cutting off all American shipping to Britain or France. Almost immediately the Americans began to turn to smuggling in order to ship goods to Europe. Defying his own limited government principles, Jefferson used

11592-463: The Georgia ballots had been rejected based on these supposed irregularities, Jefferson and Burr would have been left with 69 votes each, or one short of the 70 votes required for a majority, meaning a contingent election would have been required between the top five finishers (Jefferson, Burr, incumbent president John Adams, Charles C. Pinckney, and John Jay) in the House of Representatives. With these votes,

11760-635: The Jay Treaty. Jefferson had never favored the Jay Treaty, which had prevented the United States from implementing economic sanctions on Britain, and he rejected the Monroe–Pinkney Treaty. Tensions with Britain heightened due to the Chesapeake – Leopard affair , a June 1807 naval confrontation between an American ship and a British ship that ended in the death or impressment of several American sailors. Beginning with Napoleon's December 1807 Milan Decree ,

11928-405: The Jefferson administration viewed the embargo as a flawed policy, but they saw it as preferable to war. Appleby describes the strategy as Jefferson's "least effective policy", and Joseph Ellis calls it "an unadulterated calamity". Others, however, portray it as an innovative, nonviolent measure which aided France in its war with Britain while preserving American neutrality. Jefferson believed that

12096-412: The Judiciary Act of 1789, which stated that the Supreme Court did, in fact, have the right to issue those writs. Marshall, therefore, ruled that part of the Judiciary Act of 1789 unconstitutional because the Constitution did not expressly grant this power to the judiciary. In deciding the constitutionality of an act of Congress, Marshall established judicial review , the most significant development in

12264-431: The Judiciary Act of 1801. The Jefferson administration also refused to deliver judicial commissions to some Adams appointees who had won Senate confirmation but had not yet formally taken office. One such appointee, William Marbury , sued Secretary of State Madison to compel him to deliver the judicial commissions. In the 1803 Supreme Court case of Marbury v. Madison , the court ruled against Marbury, but also established

12432-473: The Louisiana Purchase was widely popular, some Federalists criticized it; Congressman Fisher Ames wrote, "We are to give money of which we have too little for land of which we already have too much." Having been dropped from the 1804 Democratic-Republican ticket, Burr ran for the position of Governor of New York in an April 1804 election , and was defeated. Federalist Party leader Alexander Hamilton

12600-732: The Navy Robert Smith . After his decision to pursue the presidency in the contingent election, Burr was excluded from any role in the Jefferson administration. Jefferson sought to make collective decisions with his cabinet, and each member's opinion was elicited before Jefferson made major decisions. Gallatin and Madison were particularly influential within Jefferson's cabinet; they held the two most important cabinet positions and served as Jefferson's key lieutenants. When Adams took office in 1797, he carried many of outgoing President George Washington 's supporters over into his new administration. As

12768-695: The Ohio Valley, with munitions provided by British traders in Canada. Attempting to form a confederation of Indian people in the Northwest Territory , the two brothers would be a continual source of irritation to westward settlers. The Indian Nations followed Tenskwatawa who had a vision of purifying his society by expelling American settlers, the "children of the Evil Spirit". The success of the Indians gave Britain hope that it could create an Indian satellite nation in parts of

12936-582: The Shawnees led by Black Hoof and the Creek. However, Jefferson dreamed of a transcontinental nation, and he became increasingly skeptical of assimilation efforts. As his presidency continued, Jefferson prioritized white settlement of the western territories over peaceful assimilation. When Jefferson assumed power, the Shawnee leader Tecumseh and his brother Tenskwatawa were leading raids against American settlements in

13104-401: The Supreme Court and the federal courts, led to one of the most important decisions in American judicial history. Marbury v. Madison solidified the United States' system of checks and balances and gave the judicial branch equal power with the executive and legislative branches. This controversial case began with Adams' appointment of Federalist William Marbury as a justice of the peace in

13272-652: The U.S. Navy into the Mediterranean Sea to defend against the Barbary Pirates, beginning the First Barbary War . The administration's initial efforts were largely ineffective, and in 1803 the frigate USS  Philadelphia was captured by Tripoli. In February 1804, Lieutenant Stephen Decatur led a successful raid on Tripoli's harbor that burned the Philadelphia , making Decatur a national hero. Jefferson and

13440-607: The Yazoo lands would continue until 1814, when Congress finally agreed to compensate the claimants. Even before the 1803 purchase of the Louisiana Territory , Jefferson had begun planning for an expedition to the lands west of the Mississippi River . Jefferson considered it important for the United States to establish a claim of "discovery" to Oregon Country by documenting and establishing an American presence there before Europeans could establish strong claims. Jefferson also hoped

13608-513: The acquisition of the Floridas, but under the terms of the Treaty of Aranjuez, Spain retained control of both of those territories. On April 30, the two delegations agreed to the terms of the Louisiana Purchase, and Napoleon gave his approval the following day. After Secretary of State James Madison gave his assurances that the purchase was well within even the strictest interpretation of the Constitution,

13776-475: The army with 3,350 officers and enlisted men. At the end of his two terms, Jefferson had lowered the national debt from $ 83 million to $ 57 million. In 1806, believing that the country would soon abolish its national debt, Jefferson proposed enlarging the army and passing a constitutional amendment to explicitly allow Congress to spend funds on internal improvements and education, but these proposals were not acted on by Congress. That same year, Congress authorized

13944-427: The benign economic conditions that persisted for much of Jefferson's presidency allowed them to run budget surpluses. Jefferson shrank the army and the navy , deeming them largely unnecessary in peacetime. He transformed the navy into a fleet consisting of inexpensive gunboats used only for defense, with the idea that they would not provoke foreign hostilities. His administration discharged numerous soldiers, leaving

14112-546: The best scientific credentials because of Lewis' military experience in the woods and "familiarity with the Indian manners and character." Jefferson possessed the largest collection of books in the world on the subject of the geography and natural history of the North American continent, and before the expedition he tutored Lewis in the sciences of mapping, botany, natural history, mineralogy, astronomy, and navigation. In May 1804,

14280-410: The calls of his fellow Democratic-Republicans to remove all Federalists from their appointed positions, but he felt that it was his right to replace the top government officials, including the cabinet. He also replaced any lower-ranking Federalist appointees who engaged in misconduct or partisan behavior. Jefferson's refusal to call for a complete replacement of federal appointees under a " spoils system "

14448-405: The centerpiece of their campaign, arguing that Jefferson's affair with an enslaved woman was hypocritical given his continuing support for slavery. The Democratic-Republicans enjoyed a marked advantage in party organization, while the Federalists and their ethos of government-by-the-elite were becoming increasingly unpopular. Jefferson won every state except for Connecticut and Delaware, taking 162 of

14616-419: The circuit courts. In addition, it gave the circuit courts jurisdiction to hear "all cases in law or equity, arising under the constitution and laws of the United States, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority." This form of jurisdiction, now known as federal question jurisdiction , had not previously been granted to the federal courts. In the 19 days between passage of this Act and

14784-580: The circuit judgeships were intended to relieve the Justices of the Supreme Court from the hardships of riding circuit (that is, sitting as judges on the circuit courts). The circuit judge-ships were abolished in 1802, and the Justices continued to ride circuit until 1879. One of the judges on the Supreme Court appointed by Adams was Chief Justice John Marshall . The Act also reorganized the district courts , creating ten. These courts were to be presided over by

14952-475: The conclusion of his administration, President Adams quickly filled as many of the newly created circuit judgeships as possible. The new judges were known as the Midnight Judges because Adams was said to be signing their appointments at midnight prior to President Thomas Jefferson 's inauguration. The famous Supreme Court case of Marbury v. Madison involved one of these "midnight" appointments, although it

15120-406: The constitutionally required certification language was contained on the outside of the envelope; and the ballot was not understood to be irregular under the election practices of the day. Brewer's arguments helped to influence Vice President Pence 's decision to reject the theory that he had such powers , via Judge J. Michael Luttig . Jefferson and Burr carried every state that had supported

15288-623: The construction of the National Road , a route designed to connect the East Coast to St. Louis , although construction on the road did not begin until 1811. In the early 1800s, much of the American frontier was subject to the competing claims of settlers, land speculators, and Native Americans. The Yazoo lands of western Georgia were no exception, and they emerged as a point of major tension during Jefferson's administration. In what became known as

15456-543: The control of Spain. Jefferson argued that the Louisiana Purchase had extended as far west as the Rio Grande , and had included West Florida as far east as the Perdido River . He hoped to use that claim, along with French pressure, to force Spain to sell both West Florida and East Florida. In 1806, he won congressional approval of a $ 2 million appropriation to obtain the Floridas; eager expansionists also contemplated authorizing

15624-553: The country as a clear statement of the party's principles. The presidential oath of office was administered by Chief Justice John Marshall . Outgoing President Adams had left the capital earlier that day, and did not attend the ceremony. By July 1801, Jefferson had assembled his cabinet, which consisted of Secretary of State James Madison , Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin , Secretary of War Henry Dearborn , Attorney General Levi Lincoln Sr. , and Secretary of

15792-460: The country by limiting government and weakening the power of elites. Before Jefferson could take office, there was a transition period in which he was the president-elect following his victory in the contingent election. The transition between Adams and Jefferson represented the first transfer of the presidency between two different political parties in United States history, and set the precedent for all subsequent inter-party transitions. It

15960-481: The court until his death in 1811. Though Federalists would never regain the political power they had held during the 1790s, the Marshall Court continued to reflect Federalist ideals until the 1830s. Jefferson appointed three people to the Supreme Court during his presidency. The first vacancy of Jefferson's presidency arose due to the resignation of Alfred Moore . Determined to appoint a Democratic-Republican from

16128-573: The daybreak, and in a first for a newspaper, Jefferson gave a copy of his speech to the National Intelligencer for it to be published and available right after delivery. He delivered a 1721-word speech in the United States Capitol 's Senate Chamber . He was not a strong speaker, and the audience could barely catch his words, which called for national unity. The speech was widely reprinted and celebrated by Democratic-Republicans across

16296-490: The early 19th century. There was concern, beginning in 1789, about the system that required the justices of the Supreme Court to "ride circuit" and reiterate decisions made in the appellate courts . The Supreme Court justices had often expressed concern and suggested that the judges of the Supreme and circuit courts be divided. The Act was repealed by Congress on January 22, 1802. The Act became law on February 13, 1801 and reduced

16464-515: The elected Jeffersonians were also supporters of Pinckney, the revered native son of the state. If South Carolina's electors gave their votes to Jefferson and Pinckney, then Pinckney would place an electoral vote behind Jefferson, becoming the vice president. However, Pinckney stayed loyal to the instructions of his party's caucus and was adamant that any elector who voted for him must also vote for Adams. With uncommitted legislators not willing to desert Jefferson and Pinckney unwilling to abandon Adams,

16632-529: The election from resulting in a tie. A letter to Jefferson from Peter Freneau assured him that a member of the Republican delegation from South Carolina would vote for George Clinton instead of Aaron Burr and a report from Georgia indicated that two of its electors would deny Burr their votes. However, this information proved faulty. Thus, all of the Democratic-Republican electors cast their votes for both Jefferson and Burr, 73 in all for each of them. According to

16800-643: The end of a long and bitter campaign, Jefferson and Burr each won 73 electoral votes, Adams won 65, and Pinckney won 64. The Federalists swept New England , the Democratic-Republicans dominated the South , and the parties split the Mid-Atlantic states of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The Democratic-Republicans' assumption that one or more electors in Rhode Island, Vermont, New Jersey, Georgia, Kentucky, or Tennessee would vote for Jefferson and not Burr resulted in

16968-468: The establishment of auxiliary societies. The Federalists peacefully accepted the transfer of power to the Democratic-Republicans in 1800, but most party leaders hoped that it would be just a temporary anomaly. Many Federalists continued to serve in state or local office, though prominent Federalists like John Jay and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney retired from public life. Reflecting the fears of other ambitious young Federalists, John Quincy Adams wrote that

17136-589: The existing district judges in most cases. In addition to subdividing several of the existing district courts, it created the District of Ohio which covered the Northwest and Indiana Territories, and the District of Potomac from the District of Columbia and pieces of Maryland and Virginia , which was the first time a federal judicial district crossed state lines. However, the district courts for Kentucky and Tennessee were abolished, and their judges reassigned to

17304-451: The expedition would discover the long-sought-for Northwest Passage to the Pacific Ocean, which would greatly promote commerce and trade for the country. In 1804, he appointed his personal secretary Meriwether Lewis , along with William Clark , as the leaders of a western expedition, dubbing it the Corps of Discovery . Jefferson chose Lewis to lead the expedition rather than someone with only

17472-575: The expedition's findings, including seeds, fossils, plant, and other specimens. In 1808, businessman John Jacob Astor established a transcontinental fur trading company, and in 1811 his company established Fort Astoria , the first American settlement on the Pacific Coast. In addition to the Corps of Discovery , Jefferson organized other western exploration expeditions, some of which traveled through Spanish territory. William Dunbar and George Hunter led

17640-412: The experiences of this and the previous election, sentiment for a new way of selecting the president and vice president rose significantly, resulting in the Twelfth Amendment . Sources: The votes of the representatives is typical and may have fluctuated from ballot to ballot, but the result for each state did not change. Even though Georgia had two representatives apportioned, one seat

17808-456: The failure of the embargo was due to selfish traders and merchants showing a lack of "republican virtue." He maintained that, had the embargo been widely observed, it would have avoided war in 1812. Like both of his predecessors, Jefferson ran for a second term. The election of 1804 was the first to be held after the ratification of the Twelfth Amendment , which instituted the current electoral system in which separate electoral votes are cast for

17976-539: The fallout from the French Revolution and the Quasi-War . The Federalists favored a strong central government and close relations with Great Britain . The Democratic-Republicans favored decentralization to the state governments, and the party attacked the taxes the Federalists imposed. The Democratic-Republicans also denounced the Alien and Sedition Acts , which the Federalists had passed to make it harder for immigrants to become citizens and to restrict statements critical of

18144-432: The federal government. The Democratic-Republicans were well organized at the state and local levels, while the Federalists were disorganized and suffered a bitter split between their two major leaders, Adams and Alexander Hamilton . According to historian John Ferling , the jockeying for electoral votes, regional divisions, and the propaganda smear campaigns created by both parties made the election recognizably modern. At

18312-496: The federal judiciary ... will take away all security for property and personal liberty, and our Republican constitution will sink into a mobocracy, the worst of all popular governments." Jefferson responded to the attack by suggesting to his supporters in the U.S. House of Representatives that Chase be impeached, asking, "Ought the seditious and official attack on the principles of our Constitution . . .to go unpunished?" The House took Jefferson's suggestion, impeaching Chase in 1804. He

18480-503: The history of the Supreme Court. Among the repercussions of the repeal of the Judiciary Act was the first and, to date, only impeachment of a sitting Supreme Court Justice , Samuel Chase . Chase, a Federalist appointed to the Supreme Court by George Washington , had publicly attacked the repeal in May 1803 while issuing his charge to a grand jury in Baltimore, Maryland : "The late alteration of

18648-651: The land from those who had been defrauded in the scandal. In 1804, Jefferson sought to compensate those defrauded in the Yazoo land scandal by giving them some of the lands acquired in the compact, but Congressman John Randolph successfully mobilized opposition to the proposal, castigating it as a giveaway to land speculators. The incident marked the start of a factionalism within the Democratic-Republican Party that would prove problematic for Jefferson and his successors, as Randolph's " tertium quids " freely criticized presidents of their own party. Controversy over

18816-534: The matter provoked outrage and weakened Jefferson's hand, and he subsequently gave up on Florida. In keeping with his Enlightenment thinking, President Jefferson adopted an assimilation policy towards American Indians known as his "civilization program" which included securing peaceful U.S.–Indian treaty alliances and encouraging agriculture. Jefferson advocated that Indian tribes should make federal purchases by credit holding their lands as collateral for repayment. Various tribes accepted Jefferson's policies, including

18984-434: The method of voting but instead passed a "stand up" election law, mandating that all votes be cast publicly and orally, an intimidating procedure that ordinarily favored those in power. Because each state could choose its own day to elect its electors in 1800, before Election Day on December 3, when electors "meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for two Persons, of whom one at least shall not be an Inhabitant of

19152-617: The midst of the Napoleonic Wars that engulfed Europe. He established a military academy, used the Navy to protect merchant ships from Barbary pirates in North Africa , and developed a plan to protect U.S. ports from foreign invasion by the use of small gunboats (a plan that proved useless when war came in 1812). He also authorized the Lewis and Clark Expedition to explore the Louisiana Territory and

19320-529: The military to enforce the embargo. Imports and exports fell immensely, and the embargo proved to be especially unpopular in New England. In March 1809, Congress replaced the embargo with the Non-Intercourse Act , which allowed trade with nations aside from Britain and France. Most historians consider Jefferson's embargo to have been ineffective and harmful to American interests. Even the top officials of

19488-402: The mobilization of ordinary people ensured that individuals outside of the elite class had the opportunity to become government officials, especially in the North. Prior to the 1790s, campaigning was considered an interference on each citizen's right to think and vote independently. Without competition for office, voter turnouts were often low, sometimes fewer than 5 percent of eligible men. With

19656-464: The nation became increasingly polarized. Jefferson and Adams were once again the major presidential candidates of their respective parties in the 1800 presidential election, and Aaron Burr was the Democratic-Republican Party's vice presidential nominee. Adams's campaign was weakened by unpopular taxes and vicious Federalist infighting over his actions in the Quasi-War. The Democratic-Republicans accused

19824-428: The nation's court system with the Judiciary Act of 1801. During the 1800 elections , there was an intense growth of partisan politics, the political party of the executive branch of government changed for the first time, and there was an unprecedented peaceful transition of the political orientation of the country's leadership. The main issues in this election were taxes, the military, peace negotiations with France, and

19992-460: The nation's most esteemed presidents. Jefferson ran for president in the 1796 election as a Democratic-Republican , but finished second in the electoral vote to Federalist John Adams ; under the laws then in place, Jefferson's second-place finish made him the Vice President of the United States . Jefferson strongly opposed the Federalist program, including the Alien and Sedition Acts , and

20160-555: The nation. Aside from commercial concerns, Americans were outraged by what they saw as an attack on national honor. In response to the attacks, Jefferson recommended an expansion of the navy, and Congress passed the Non-importation Act , which restricted many, but not all, British imports. To restore peaceful relations with Britain, Monroe negotiated the Monroe–Pinkney Treaty , which would have represented an extension of

20328-440: The necessary majority of nine. On February 17, on the 36th ballot, Bayard changed his vote from Burr to no selection, joined by his allies in Maryland and Vermont. This changed the Maryland and Vermont votes from no selection to Jefferson, giving him the votes of 10 states and the presidency. The four representatives present from South Carolina, all Federalists, also changed their 3–1 selection of Burr to four abstentions. Due to

20496-399: The new judicial positions were necessary, and partly to weaken Federalist influence on the courts. Federalists vehemently opposed this plan, arguing that Congress did not have the power to abolish judicial positions that were occupied. Despite these objections, the Democratic-Republicans passed the Judiciary Act of 1802 , which largely restored the judicial structure that had prevailed prior to

20664-501: The new republic of Haiti in 1804, Jefferson refused to recognize Haiti as the second independent republic in the Americas. In part he hoped to win Napoleon's support over the acquisition of Florida. American slaveholders had been frightened and horrified by the slave massacres of the planter class during the rebellion and after, and a southern-dominated Congress was "hostile to Haiti." They feared its success would encourage slave revolt in

20832-426: The next vacancy that shall happen in the said court, it shall consist of five justices only; that is to say, of one chief justice, and four associate justices. The Act reorganized the circuit courts , doubling them in number from three to six, and created three new circuit judgeships for each circuit (except the sixth, which received only one circuit judge). In addition to creating new lifetime posts for Federal judges,

21000-491: The number of seats on the Supreme Court from 6 to 5, effective upon the next vacancy in the Court. No such vacancy occurred during the brief period the Act was in effect, so the size of the Court remained unchanged. The Act also created 16 new judgeships that John Adams rapidly began to fill in the last weeks of his presidency. These judges came to be known as the "Midnight Judges". SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That from and after

21168-476: The office after defeating incumbent John Adams in the 1800 presidential election . The election was a political realignment in which the Democratic-Republican Party swept the Federalist Party out of power, ushering in a generation of Jeffersonian Republican dominance in American politics. After serving two terms, Jefferson was succeeded by Secretary of State James Madison , also of the Democratic-Republican Party. Jefferson took office determined to roll back

21336-628: The original oral ballot. In 2004, David Fontana and Bruce Ackerman asserted that Georgia's certificate did not take the constitutionally mandated form of a "List of all the Persons voted for, and of the Number of Votes for each". They claimed that Vice President Jefferson, who was counting the votes in his role as President of the Senate, immediately counted the votes from Georgia as votes for Jefferson and Burr, though they observed that "no objections were raised". If

21504-473: The outgoing Federalist-dominated New York legislature. Hamilton's plan was for the outgoing assembly to pass legislation that would establish the popular election of electors through electoral districts, a strategy almost certain to secure nine or ten of the twelve elector slots for the Federalists. Jay refused to participate in such an underhanded scheme. The Federalist legislature in Connecticut did not change

21672-413: The party to step aside if he and Jefferson should tie in electoral votes. However, there was confusion as to whether or not Burr could simply concede the presidency to Jefferson and become vice-president, or whether he would have been forced to withdraw entirely and allow one of the Federalist candidates to become vice-president, as the Constitution was unclear on the matter. Regardless, he refused to disavow

21840-460: The potential candidacy of James Monroe. Additionally, Vice President Clinton, who had accepted the vice presidential nomination again, announced his own candidacy for president. It took all of Jefferson's prestige and charm to convince dissident Democratic-Republicans not to bolt from the party out of disdain for Madison. In the end, Madison headed off the intra-party challenges and defeated Federalist nominee Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, winning 122 of

22008-476: The precedent of judicial review , thereby strengthening the judicial branch . Still unhappy with Federalist power on the bench even after the passage of the Judiciary Act of 1802, the Democratic-Republicans impeached district court Judge John Pickering and Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase . Federalist congressmen strongly opposed both impeachments, criticizing them as attacks on judicial independence. Pickering, who frequently presided over cases while drunk,

22176-439: The presidency and vice presidency. With Burr having little chance at re-nomination, the party's congressional nominating caucus chose Governor George Clinton of New York as Jefferson's running mate. The Federalists nominated Charles Cotesworth Pinckney for president and Rufus King for vice president. The Federalists made attacks on Jefferson's alleged atheism, his support for democratization, and his affair with Sally Hemings

22344-518: The presidency, writing in December 1800 to Representative Samuel Smith (R-MD) that he would not "engage to resign" if chosen president, adding that the question was "unnecessary, unreasonable and impertinent". Rumors circulated that Representative James A. Bayard (F-DE) had—purportedly in Burr's name—approached Smith and Edward Livingston (R-NY) with offers of political appointments if they voted for Burr. True or not, House Democratic-Republicans, who from

22512-668: The presidency. Given Pinckney's lack of political experience, he would have been expected to be open to Hamilton's influence. However, Hamilton's plan backfired and hurt the Federalist party, particularly after one of his letters, a scathing criticism of Adams that was fifty-four pages long, fell into the hands of a Democratic-Republican and soon after became public. It embarrassed Adams and damaged Hamilton's efforts on behalf of Pinckney, not to mention speeding Hamilton's own political decline. The contemporarily unorthodox public campaigning methods employed in 1800 were first employed by Jefferson's running mate and campaign manager, Aaron Burr, who

22680-506: The president to acquire Canada , by force if necessary. In this case, unlike that of the Louisiana Territory, the dynamics of European politics worked against Jefferson. Napoleon had played Washington against Madrid to see what he could get, but by 1805 Spain was his ally. Spain had no desire to cede Florida, which was part of its leverage against an expanding United States. Revelations of the bribe which Jefferson offered to France over

22848-635: The process of selecting electors to ensure the desired result. In Georgia, Democratic-Republican legislators replaced the popular vote with selection by the state legislature. In Virginia, the Democratic-Republican-controlled legislature switched from electoral districts to a general ticket , a winner-take-all system. Federalist legislators also switched methods, switching from districts and general tickets to legislature votes in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, respectively. In Pennsylvania,

23016-503: The rate of about 1,000 slaves a year continued for decades. "The two major achievements of Jefferson's presidency were the Louisiana Purchase and the abolition of the slave trade," according to historian John Chester Miller . American trade boomed after the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in the early 1790s, in large part because American shipping was allowed to act as neutral carriers with European powers. Though

23184-478: The real choice between Jefferson and Burr. Historians wrote that Adams did not lose that badly in the original election, with the musical inflating the size of Jefferson's victory. It implies Hamilton's support for Jefferson over Burr was the catalyst for the Burr–Hamilton duel ; in fact, while that helped sour relations between Burr and Hamilton, the duel was ultimately provoked by Hamilton's statements about Burr in

23352-472: The rebels, Napoleon gave up on his plans for an empire in the Western Hemisphere. In early 1803, Jefferson dispatched James Monroe to France to join ambassador Robert Livingston in purchasing New Orleans, East Florida , and West Florida from France. To the surprise of the American delegation, Napoleon offered to sell the entire territory of Louisiana for $ 15 million. The Americans also pressed for

23520-423: The rejection to change the selection method backfired on the Federalists. In March 1800, two months before the assembly elections, the Democratic-Republicans attempted to pass a bill that would switch from a legislature vote to electoral districts, hoping they would secure at least a third of the state's seats. The Federalists defeated the measure, believing that they would win control of both chambers and award all of

23688-456: The results from which are as follows. States and districts where the margin of victory was under 1%: States and districts where the margin of victory was under 5%: States and districts where the margin of victory was under 10%: In February 1801, the members of the House of Representatives balloted as states to determine whether Jefferson or Burr would become president. There were sixteen states, each with one vote; an absolute majority of nine

23856-489: The rise of the two-party system, many regions saw voter participation rise to approximately 20 percent in the 1790s and to 80 percent during Jefferson's presidency. Wood writes, "by the standards of the early nineteenth century America possessed the most popular electoral politics in the world." The egalitarianism of the age extended beyond voting rights, as the practice of indentured servitude declined and traditional hierarchies in employment and education were challenged. In

24024-464: The same Congress passed an act "providing for the execution of the laws of the United States in the State of Ohio." Neither act, however, set a formal date of statehood. An official statehood date for Ohio was not set until 1953, when the 83rd Congress passed a joint resolution "for admitting the State of Ohio into the Union", which designated March 1, 1803, as that date. It was the first state created from

24192-517: The same State with themselves" in accordance with the Constitution, the voting lasted from October to December. As election day neared, the election was too close to call. The last state to vote, South Carolina, chose its electors on December 2, and would become key to determining the election. The state elections in mid-October had produced an assembly that was about evenly divided between committed Federalists and Republicans, with 16 unaffiliated representatives who were all strongly pro-Jefferson. Many of

24360-482: The situation facing the Supreme Court were successful until John Adams took control in 1797. Faced with the Election of 1800 , a watershed moment in American history that represented not only the struggle to correctly organize the foundation of the United States government but also the culmination of struggle between the waning Federalist Party and the rising Democratic-Republican Party , John Adams successfully reorganized

24528-468: The start of the 1800 campaign viewed Jefferson as their candidate for president and Burr for vice president, faced two abhorrent possible outcomes when the House met to vote: the Federalists could engineer a victory for Burr; or the Federalists could refuse to break the deadlock, leaving Federalist Secretary of State John Marshall as Acting President. Neither came to pass, however, chiefly due to Hamilton's energetic opposition to Burr. Hamilton embarked on

24696-434: The state legislature. Not until the 1836 presidential election would all states have direct popular selection of electors (except South Carolina, which had its state legislature vote for electors until 1868). Popular vote records for several states are incomplete, and the returns from Kentucky and Tennessee appear to have been lost; states did not print or issue electoral ballots, and most were issued by newspapers that supported

24864-514: The state's electoral votes to the Federalist nominees. However, in the April state elections, Aaron Burr's effective mobilization of the vote in New York City led to a reversal of the Federalist majority in the state legislature, providing crucial support for the Democratic-Republican ticket. In response to the Federalist defeat, Hamilton attempted to get Governor John Jay to call a special session of

25032-457: The total number of votes for Jefferson and Burr was 73, which gave them a majority of the total, but they were tied. Holly Brewer argued that Jefferson's counting of the Georgia ballot did not support this theory, and that Ackerman and Fontana were incorrect, because the ballot did in fact comply with constitutional requirements, since it contained a list of all four electoral college votes for both Jefferson and Burr respectively (and only them);

25200-486: The uncommitted legislators eventually reluctantly agreed to support Burr. Under the United States Constitution as it then stood, each elector cast two votes, and the candidate with a majority of the votes was elected president, with the vice presidency going to the runner-up. The Federalists therefore arranged for one of their Rhode Island electors to vote for John Jay instead of Charles Pinckney to prevent

25368-546: The vacancy. Though Representative George W. Campbell of Tennessee emerged as the most popular choice in Congress, Jefferson was unwilling to appoint a sitting member of Congress. Jefferson instead appointed Thomas Todd , another individual popular among members of Congress, and who served as the chief justice of the Kentucky Court of Appeals . Jefferson hoped that his appointments would weaken Chief Justice Marshall's influence on

25536-564: The yeomen farmers idealized by Jeffersonian democracy . President James Monroe rounded out the Southeast when he obtained Florida from Spain in the Adams–Onís Treaty . President Jefferson planned the Embargo Act of 1807 to force Europe to comply. It forbade trade with both France and Britain, but they did not bend. Furthermore, Federalists denounced his policy as partisanship in favor of agrarian interests instead of commercial interests. It

25704-512: The young American navy forced Tunis and Algiers into breaking their alliance with Tripoli which ultimately moved it out of the war. Jefferson also ordered five separate naval bombardments of Tripoli, which restored peace in the Mediterranean for a while, although Jefferson continued to pay the remaining Barbary States until the end of his presidency. Jefferson believed that western expansion played an important role in furthering his vision of

25872-413: The younger generation was making no move to abolish slavery; he largely avoided the issue until 1806. He did succeed in convincing Congress to block the foreign importation of slaves into the newly purchased Louisiana Territory. Seeing that in 1808 the twenty-year constitutional ban on ending the international slave trade would expire, in December 1806 in his presidential message to Congress, he called for

26040-577: Was a key factor in Burr's defeat, having made callous remarks regarding Burr. Believing that his honor was offended, Burr challenged Hamilton to a duel. On July 11, 1804, Burr mortally wounded Hamilton in a duel at Weehawken, New Jersey. Burr was indicted for Hamilton's murder in New York and New Jersey causing him to flee to Georgia, although he remained President of the Senate during Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase's impeachment trial . The two Burr indictments were "quietly allowed to die". After Aaron Burr

26208-510: Was acquitted by the Senate of all charges in March 1805, with Vice President Aaron Burr presiding. The repeal of the Judiciary Act also ended the brief period of comprehensive federal-question jurisdiction . The federal courts would not receive such jurisdiction again until 1875. Presidency of Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson served as the third president of the United States from March 4, 1801, to March 4, 1809. Jefferson assumed

26376-407: Was an appointment of a justice of the peace for the District of Columbia—which was authorized under a different Act of Congress, not the Judiciary Act. Attempts to solve this situation before and throughout the presidency of John Adams were overshadowed by more pressing foreign and domestic issues that occupied Congress during the early years of the nation's development. None of those attempts to fix

26544-427: Was attacked by both the opposition Democratic-Republicans and a group of so-called "High Federalists" aligned with Alexander Hamilton . The Democratic-Republicans felt that the Adams foreign policy was too favorable toward Britain; feared that the new army called up for the Quasi-War would oppress the people; opposed new taxes to pay for war; and attacked the Alien and Sedition Acts as violations of states' rights and

26712-459: Was convicted by the Senate in 1804. However, the impeachment proceedings of Chase proved more difficult. While serving on the Supreme Court, Chase had frequently expressed his skepticism of democracy, predicting that the nation would "sink into mobocracy ," but he had not shown himself to be incompetent in the same way that Pickering had. Several Democratic-Republican senators joined the Federalists in opposing Chase's removal, and Chase would remain on

26880-475: Was disgraced in the duel of 1804 and his own presidential ambitions were ended, he was reported by the British ambassador as wanting to "effect a separation of the western part of the United States [at the Appalachian Mountains]". Jefferson believed that to be so by November 1806, because Burr had been rumored to be variously plotting with some western states to secede for an independent empire, or to raise

27048-438: Was evenly split and cast a blank ballot. The remaining state, Maryland, had five Federalist representatives to three Democratic-Republicans; one of its Federalist representatives voted for Jefferson, forcing that state delegation also to cast a blank ballot. Publicly, Burr remained quiet between mid-December 1800 and mid-February 1801, when the electoral votes were counted. Behind the scenes, he faced mounting pressure from within

27216-446: Was followed by his successors until the election of Andrew Jackson in 1828. In the final days of his presidency, Adams had appointed numerous federal judges to fill positions created by the Judiciary Act of 1801. Democratic-Republicans were outraged by the appointment of these "midnight judges," almost all of whom were Federalists. Jefferson and his allies sought to reverse the Judiciary Act of 1801, partly because they did not believe

27384-507: Was highly unpopular in New England, which began smuggling operations, and proved ineffective in stopping harsh treatment from British warships. For decades prior to Jefferson's accession to office, the Barbary Coast pirates of North Africa had been capturing American merchant ships, pillaging valuable cargoes and enslaving crew members, demanding huge ransoms for their release. Before independence, American merchant ships were protected from

27552-446: Was just a matter of time until Louisiana fell to either Britain or the United States. U.S. expansionary hopes were temporarily dashed when Napoleon convinced Spain to transfer the province to France in the 1801 Treaty of Aranjuez . Though French pressure played a role in the conclusion of the treaty, the Spanish also believed that French control of Louisiana would help protect New Spain from American expansion. Napoleon's dreams of

27720-571: Was nationally discredited, Jefferson feared for the very Union. In a report to Congress January 1807, Jefferson declared Burr's guilt "placed beyond question". By March 1807, Burr was arrested in New Orleans and placed on trial for treason in Richmond, Virginia, with Chief Justice John Marshall presiding. On June 13, Jefferson was subpoenaed by Burr to release documents that favored Burr's defense. Jefferson stated he had no loyalty to Burr and only released

27888-579: Was required for victory. It was the outgoing House of Representatives, controlled by the Federalist Party, that was charged with electing the new president. Jefferson was the great enemy of the Federalists, and a faction of Federalist representatives tried to block him and elect Burr. Most Federalists voted for Burr, giving Burr six of the eight states controlled by Federalists. The seven delegations controlled by Democratic-Republicans all voted for Jefferson, and Georgia's sole Federalist representative also voted for him, giving him eight states. The Vermont delegation

28056-513: Was the first time in United States history that a president handed over the presidency to a political opponent. Unlike modern-day presidential transitions, the transitions at this time were informal affairs, with relatively minimal activity required of the president-elect. During the transition, Jefferson picked members of his Cabinet . He also selected individuals less principal positions of his administration, such as Meriwether Lewis to serve as his personal secretary . Before leaving office,

28224-504: Was vacant due to the death of James Jones . Even though South Carolina had six representatives apportioned, Thomas Sumter was absent due to illness, and Abraham Nott departed for South Carolina between the first and final ballots. The Constitution, in Article II, Section 1 , provided that the state legislatures should decide the manner in which their electors were chosen. Different state legislatures chose different methods: State

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