1796 Presidential Election: Adams vs Jefferson
THE FOLLOWING CONTEST, SCHEDULED FOR ONE TERM IS FOR THE 1796 UNITED STATES PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION! INTRODUCING FIRST, HE IS THE CURRENT VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, FROM MASSACHUSETTS, REPRESENTING THE FEDERALISTS, JOHNNNNNN ADAMS!
Vice President John Adams
Leader of the Democratic Republicans
"Thank you everyone, you can all kiss my you know what" - President George Washington
Running as fast as they can, Jacques Necker lives again
"GADZOOKS!" - George Washington
"Bye Bye Max" - Collot d'Herbois
"Your move, America" - Napoleon Bonaparte
"Regulators....mount up" - Samuel Johnston
"SCOTUS rules" - James Iredell
"What you lookin at?" - Oliver Ellsworth
"Slaves aren't people, they are our property" - Charles Cotesworth Pinckney
"Aaron Burr, we comin for you sucka!" - Thomas Pickney
FIGHT!
"Well this is awkward, Thomas" John Adams "Mmhmmm" - Thomas Jefferson
HERE IS YOUR WINNER AND.....NEWWWWWW PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES...JOHNNNN ADAMSSSSS!!!!!!
AND HIS OPPONENT, REPRESENTING THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLICANS, FROM VIRGINIA, HE IS THE FORMER UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE, THOMASSSSS JEFFERSON!
The talk of the country going into the 1796 Presidential Election was whether or not President George Washington would run for a third term. The Constitution regulated that presidents would be held to just two terms but Washington was such a national hero, no one would have batted an eye if George said "screw the rules" and ran for a third term. As it was, George Washington did everything in life by the book and this would be no different. Washington refused to run for a third term stating he needed to uphold the Constitution. He was also 64 years old and had had enough. The fallout from the Jay Treaty being passed in 1794 upset a lot of Americans who were still bitter toward the British following the Revolutionary War. Washington knew he had to get out while his dignity was intact. In a farewell address, Washington warned the country of the dangers of a two party system, foreshadowing the bloodbaths that would take place in the future. Even though Washington leaned toward the Federalists, he was the last of a dying breed of political figures that preceded political parties. Washington served his two terms as president with class, dignity and grace.
With Washington retiring, the 1796 election became wide open. Vice President John Adams benefited from having Washington take the electoral votes away from Thomas Jefferson in the previous two elections, but now Jefferson was free from the Washington shadow. These two may have been the odds on favorites to win the presidency, but there were other men involved that thought they had a shot too. This would be the last of the free-for-all elections thanks to the results I'll get to later. What was the primary topic going into the election? The French Revolution and the fallout from the Jay Treaty. What's that, you ask? Lemme talk to ya!
Without going into a complete chronicle of the French Revolution, I'll give the the cliff notes. Up until 1789, King Louis the 16th threw lavish parties every night with the rich aristocrats of French society. How could they afford to party this hard? The French citizens of course. How many citizens suffered? Only about EIGHTY percent of the French population lived in poverty while the literal rich fat man partied. In 1789, the French citizens began to figure out all their hard earned money was going to the King & his cohorts and decided to do something about it. For three years the citizens played by the rules and tried to negotiate their rights much like the diplomats in the United States prior to the American Revolution. When that didn't work, the French citizens decided to storm King Louis' palace and say the monarchy is OVER in August of 1792. Louis, his wife Marie Antoinette, their two kids and even Louis' sister Elizabeth were taken prisoner. Led by Maximilien Robespierre, the new French democracy said "let's kill the fat guy." Louis was executed in January of 1793 with Marie Antoinette getting the guillotine in October. Upon hearing the news, George Washington went berserk.
So once the news of the French going INSANE hit the United States, the federalists banded together to come up with a solution. The French made it known once they were done cleaning up themselves, the British would be the next to feel their wrath. The Democratic Republicans, led by Thomas Jefferson, were sympathetic to the French cause since it mirrored their own chase for independence from the British. Jefferson being the former minister to France, also had a stake in helping his former allies. After all, the French, Marquis De Lafayette in particular, helped the Americans during their Revolution. It would seem only fair to help them in return. Not so fast! Under orders from President Washington, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton and Vice President John Adams, United States Chief Justice John Jay got together with British Foreign Secretary Baron William Grenville to hammer out the Jay Treaty. In other words, the Americans would remain neutral in the upcoming skirmish between the French and the British. The British said "fine, we don't need you anyway" but the French were hopping mad. Not only that, American citizens became divided because a lot of them still remembered the French as their allies during the Revolutionary War. It was fairly obvious the Federalists, well known supporters of the British, were trying to maintain peace with Britain by telling the French they're on their own. By the time the Treaty was signed in November of 1794, old Slapsy Maxy Robespierre was a victim of his own reign of terror in July of 1794 when his head rolled too.
So with Jefferson rallying not only the Republicans but fellow Francophiles across the state, and the Federalists rallying with their support of the British, the French put their business on hold to see what would happen in the election. Essentially the fate of all three countries were in the hands of the 1796 election. If Adams were to win, it would be business as usual with the States remaining neutral and France unlikely to topple the British Empire. This might also lead to eventual war with France who weren't going to take kindly to being snubbed. However, if Jefferson were to win, the US might be drawn into a "world" war that would cause may American and French deaths just to stick it to Britain one more time. Still, it might not even come to that. Like mentioned previously, this would be the last of the free-for-all elections where anyone from any party could win. Who were the contestants this time around? Representing the Federalists would be John Adams along with some new players.
Joining Adams would be North Carolina senator Samuel Johnston. Johnston was born in Scotland in 1733 but immigrated to North Carolina when he was 3 years old. He was elected to the North Carolina House of Burgesses in 1759 and 11 years later, was apart of the North Carolina War of Regulation. What the heck is that? North Carolina citizens rose up against their governing body they felt was corrupt and tried to overthrow it. Unfortunately British Colonial Governor William Tyron got the last laugh by eliminating the regulators in 1771. Still, news of the Boston Massacre had reached North Carolina which meant if the colonies were going to go to war, NC would too. Johnston served as North Carolina's representative to the Continental Congresses. A decade later, he became the Governor of North Carolina from 1787 to 1789 when he won a seat in the United States Senate. He left the Senate in 1793 but still had enough of a name to be nominated for Presidency in 1796.
Also representing the North Carolina Federalists was Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, James Iredell. James was born in Lewes, England in 1751 before immigrating to North Carolina in 1767. He actually studied law under Samuel Johnston and was admitted to the bar in 1771. In 1774 he wrote an essay on the importance of independence that preceded the actual Declaration by two years. By 1779 he was the Attorney General for North Carolina although he was replaced by Alfred Moore in 1782. In 1790 the Supreme Court of the United States was established and President Washington himself anointed the 39 year old Iredell to be on it as an associate justice. He oversaw the Eleventh Amendment of the Constitution passing in 1795 and by 1796, teamed with his mentor Johnston to represent the Federalists in the election.
Also running was former Supreme Court Chief Justice and current Governor of New York, John Jay. The current Supreme Court Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth was also running. He was born in 1745 in Windsor, Connecticut and started college at Yale in 1762 but transferred to modern day Princeton the year later. He finally got admitted to the bar in 1771. Fun fact, he was friends with both Samuel Colt and Samuel Morse. Ever fire a Colt 45 or send Morse code? Thank them for that. After stints of regimental duties during the Revolutionary War, he became the Hartford County State Attorney in 1777 and later joined the Supreme Court of Errors in 1785. What's that you ask? The Connecticut supreme court, what a fitting name. It was Ellsworth that suggested during the Constitutional Convention to keep the name "United States" that was mentioned in the Declaration of Independence. Ellsworth and fellow Connecticut delegate Roger Sherman also argued for the electoral process for the federal Senate and House of Representatives. As mentioned in previous videos, the Judiciary Act of 1789 was also Ellsworth's baby and still the main reason why the SCOTUS even now still has the power it does. Lastly, it was his idea to send John Jay to England to negotiate the Jay Treaty once France decided to lop people's heads off. Washington essentially repaid Ellsworth by naming him Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1796. Fun fact, William Cushing was originally offered the position but he politely declined, hence why Ellsworth took the mantle. Either way, the rub from Washington put Ellsworth high on the Federalist list.
To round out the Federalists, we had the Pinckney brothers. The current Minister To France Charles Cotesworth Pinckney was born in 1746 in Charlestown, South Carolina. His father was actually the Chief Justice of the South Carolina supreme court. Charles ended up attending school in London in 1753 and didn't return home until 1773 at the age of 27. He immediately married Sarah Middleton, daughter of Continental Congress president Henry. When war broke out in 1775, Pinckney remained loyal to South Carolina and its plight for freedom against the crown. He enlisted in the Continental army and was a captain during the Battle of Sullivan's Island which successfully kept the British from seizing South Carolina. The victory was shortlived as two years later the British successfully defended Florida from Pinckney's forces. He also failed in the Siege of Savannah in 1779 and Charlestown finally fell in 1780. He was taken prisoner but didn't rat out where the rest of the troops were while in prison. He was held prisoner for two years until he was released with the war coming to an end. He ended his military career as a major general when the war was over. Unfortunately in 1784 Sarah died and Charles married Mary Snead, a southern belle from a wealthy family in Georgia. His political career was that of a Federalist. Not only did he argue for a strong central government but he was one of the main perpetrators of the Fugitive Slave act in the Constitution. In fact, South Carolina would not have joined the Union had the Act not been passed. Pinckney turned down several roles offered during George Washington's administration as president as he was happy where he was in South Carolina. Then when France plunged itself into revolution, he accepted a post as Minister to France in 1796 to try to sort out the mess. Because he was one of the most powerful men in South Carolina, he was thrown into the mix for president.
Thomas Pinckney was Charles' younger brother and current minister to Great Britain. He was born in Charlestown, South Carolina just like Charles but spent ages 4 to 24 in England. Just like his brother, he was also a prisoner of war. He was captured in the disastrous Battle of Camden in 1780. Following the war, he was a hero in South Carolina and effortlessly won the Governor's race in 1787. He repeated in 1788 but state law required a two year limit, so he gave up the mantle in 1789 to William Moultrie. After that, he served in the state House of Representatives until 1791. In 1792, after George Washington was re-elected president, Thomas agreed to be the minister to Great Britain. He got almost nothing done there until Washington sent his ace in the hole, John Jay to set things right. Jay was able to hammer out the Jay Treaty. Thomas then was sent to Spain to negotiate the Treaty of San Lorenzo which allowed the Americans to export goods through Spanish controlled Mississippi River. By the time of the 1796 election, John Adams of the Federalist party made it known his choice as Vice President would have been Thomas Pinckney. Unfortunately for John, the presidency was still a free for all with second place still winning Vice Presidency. It was unlikely for Pinckney to defeat the likes of Aaron Burr or Thomas Jefferson. Still, Pinckney was going to give it a try.
As for the Democratic Republicans, it was all familiar faces. Massachusetts Governor Samuel Adams, the older cousin to John was throwing his hat in the ring. Former New York Governor George Clinton was also trying to run it back after falling 27 electoral votes short of the Vice Presidency in 1792. With George Washington out of the picture, he thought he'd at least win the Vice Presidency. The problem with that, was Jefferson had already named Aaron Burr his Vice President by choice. Just like with Adams and Pinckney, this was still a free for all. This would be presumably an 11 way dance for the Presidency, who would win? Let's find out.
And the results were? Finishing dead last with just one electoral vote was Charles Coteworth Pinckney. Somehow George Washington still managed to get two electoral votes, one from Maryland and one from Virginia, despite already turning down a third term. Another complete joke was Maryland decided to cast 2 electoral votes to Senator John Henry who wasn't even on the radar. Samuel Johnston rounded out the trio with just two electoral votes. Not much better was James Iredell with just 3 votes. John Jay was up next with just five. George Clinton managed just 7 votes and Oliver Ellsworth had nabbed 11. In fifth place....Samuel Adams with 15 votes. Now it was down to the big four. Adams wanted the presidency with Thomas Pinckney as his VP and Thomas Jefferson wanted it with Burr as his VP. Unfortunately Burr didn't even come close with just 30 electoral votes. Winning by a slim margin of 68 to 59, Thomas Jefferson beat out Thomas Pinckney to win Vice Presidency. That meant, oh yes, JOHN ADAMS was the new President of the United States with 71 electoral votes. Adams had narrowly defeated Jefferson by just 3 votes. The sad part was had a few electoral votes swung the other way, including the yahoos that voted for Washington and Henry, Pinckney would have won the election outright. As it was, the Federalist Adams would have the Republican Jefferson as his Vice President. Talk about a country about to be divided.
So now the balance of power was divided with Adams the Federalist as President and Jefferson the Democratic Republican as Vice President. France and Britain were waiting for the outcome and neither were happy with the result. A straight win by the Federalists would have benefited Britain and a straight win the other way meant a victory for France. In worst case scenario, it was status quo as Adams intended to uphold the Jay Treaty and remain neutral. The results of that were going to suck for the US but that's a story for another time. What the government learned was this free for all format wasn't going to work because much needed electoral votes were going to the wrong people with too many guys on each ticket. They would amend this first by going to a two candidate ticket in 1800 and later the 12th amendment would be passed in 1803 & ratified in 1804. As for now, it was Massachusetts' own John Adams as the winner and new champion.
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