How Has The Electoral College Changed The Election Of 1800

The election of 1800 was a crucial turning point in America’s history. This election was different from the start, Thomas Jefferson and Burr began campaigning against John Adams and Pinckney thirteen months prior to the election; there were campaign attacks, counter-attacks, political mudslinging, and personal attacks from both parties. This election completely changed presidential elections and the method in which we vote for president and vice president. The Electoral College went through a significant change after the government saw the holes that were left in it by this war of an election.

The Electoral College condenses the population’s vote for the President of the United States into 538 electoral votes. After all the votes are tallied,

The candidate with the most votes became the President, and the runner-up assumed the role of Vice President. The first design of the College lasted through four presidential elections before political parties began emerging in the United States. The 12th Amendment changed the College to take into account political parties overriding state loyalties. Because the President and Vice President could have opposing political ideologies, cohesiveness executive branch was non-existent. The only portion that has not changed within the College is each State’s legislature has the power to choose its electors

Thomas Jefferson and Burr ran against John Adams and Pinckney, Jefferson and Burr had more support because America began to lean away from the conservative view for a more democratic party. Because Jefferson and Burr each received seventy-three electoral votes, Adams and Pinckney were out of the running. At first, it seemed to only be a small electoral technicality, but when the Federalists began to back Jefferson’s running mate, everything changed. The general public sided with Jefferson, but the federalists backed Burr because of his belief in a strong central government. Because they received the same amount of electoral votes, a tie breaker in the House of Representatives was required. Jefferson won the presidential election of 1800 by 10 votes in the House of Representatives