In all my readings on the Electoral College and the Constitution, I have found that there are several differences between what the Constitutions meant when the election process was defined and how the 1824 election interpreted them to mean. The Constitution has systematic instructions for the election of our President and what to do if there is a conflict with the Electoral College. While in the 1824, they added another means for electing our President. According to Thomas Jefferson "governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."

(Jefferson 516) Simply put each American has a responsibility in the election

of our President. The election of 1824 put the Constitution's election process to the test.

On Election Day, there were still four candidates in the running for President. Since no

candidate won with the constitutional majority of electoral votes, was sent to the House

of Representatives for them to vote on.

The electoral vote is the primary method for electing the President.

Each state shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature therefore may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the

whole Numbers of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled to in Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding and Office of Trust or Profit

Although no candidate had the constitutional majority of the electoral votes to win without going to the House of Representatives, one candidate (Jackson) did have a small lead over the next opponent (Adams). According to the House of Representatives web page the breakdown of the Electoral votes are as follows: Andrew Jackson 99, John Quincy Adams 84, William Crawford 41 and Henry Clay 37.e Since the Constitution states that when there is a conflict with the Electoral College the top three candidates are sent to the House of Representatives for further voting. "Andrew Jackson claimed that he won the popular vote in 1824. The truth is that there were no votes cast in six states, including New York. So about 25% of the electorate did not even express a preference in using the popular vote to elect the President." (1824) The voting process is not the same today as it was in 1824. Today we have a uniform ballot (the same names on all of the ballots) across the country while in 1824 that was no the case. "Jackson was not on the ballots anywhere in New England. Adams did not appear in Kentucky or North Carolina. Crawford and Clay were

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)