Why Did Andrew Jackson Lose The Election

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The election of 1824 was very competitive. Five candidates with distinguished credentials entered the presidential race. Henry Clay and Andrew Jackson faced the severe challenge from three contenders of Monroe’s cabinets: Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, Secretary of War John Calhoun, and Treasury Secretary William Harris Crawford. All the candidates claimed their belief in Jeffersonian Republicanism. [1] However, the candidates had unique attributes to win and shortcomings to lose the election.

Henry Clay, Speaker of the House Representatives, was a strong nationalist who relied on the support from the growing West. He hoped to win the required support from the Northeast with his American System for national development. Being the House Speaker, he certainly hoped that none of the other candidates would win the majority of the electoral college, which would gave him advantage
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Especially, he defeated the British army and won the battle of Orleans during the War of 1812, which made him a national hero. [3] However, some argued that he never served in the cabinet or important positions in the federal government and did not serve long enough in Congress; therefore, he was a famous solider at most. Some even dubbed him Julius Caesar threatening the democracy of the nation. [4] Finally, he was accused of corruption on land speculation and the Treaty of 1818 in the Chickasaw Nation. [5]

Secretary of State John Q Adam’s recent diplomatic victories increased his popularity among the nation. [6] In addition, he was a political veteran, being the son of the 2nd President, John Adam and once serving as diplomat to various countries, members in Congress. Nonetheless, William Brown accused him of being incapable of leading the nation because of not serving in the army and his using nepotism in politics