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1824 United States presidential election in Indiana

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1824 United States presidential election in Indiana
← 1820
November 8, 1824
1828 →
Turnout37.1%[1]
 
Nominee Andrew Jackson Henry Clay John Quincy Adams
Party Democratic-Republican Democratic-Republican Democratic-Republican
Home state Tennessee Kentucky Massachusetts
Running mate John C. Calhoun Nathan Sanford John C. Calhoun
Electoral vote 5 0 0
Popular vote 7,444 5,321 3,093
Percentage 46.9% 33.5% 19.5%
County Results
President before election

James Monroe
Democratic-Republican

Elected President

John Quincy Adams
Democratic-Republican

A presidential election was held in Indiana on November 8, 1824, as part of the 1824 United States presidential election. The junior U.S. senator from Tennessee Andrew Jackson defeated the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Henry Clay and the U.S. secretary of state John Quincy Adams. All three candidates represented the Democratic-Republican Party. No candidate won a majority of the electoral vote in the national election; Adams eventually became the 6th president of the United States after winning a contingent election conducted by the United States House of Representatives.[2]

This was the first election in which Indiana's electors were elected by voters statewide, rather than by appointment of the state legislature. Jackson was nominated by delegates to a convention held at Salem, Indiana, and drew support based on his military record, residence in a Western state, support for internal improvements, and fidelity to republican principles.[3] Clay hoped to carry the state based on his advocacy for Western interests, but was harmed by closeness to political elites blamed for the lingering economic recession. Adams was popular with Quakers and others opponents of slavery, but perceived indifference to the need for regional economic development limited his appeal.[4] Jackson carried the state with a plurality based on his strength in Southern Indiana, while Clay won most of the sparsely-populated counties in Central Indiana. Adams ran a distant third in much of the state, but carried Randolph and Wayne counties, home to the Quaker stronghold of Richmond, Indiana.[5]

Background

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The Indiana General Assembly passed legislation in January 1824 to appoint the state's electors by a popular vote.[6] Whether to elect all five electors on a statewide general ticket, or individually from single-member districts, was the subject of broad disagreement.[7] Hoosier diarist Calvin Fletcher reported lively debate in Indianapolis on the merits of both methods versus appointment by the legislature.[8] Clay's supporters in the General Assembly favored election by districts in the belief that their candidate could not win a statewide vote. The general ticket system was thought by some observers to encourage official corruption, by increasing the influence of those who promised to deliver the state's electoral votes in exchange for plum patronage jobs. Despite these objections, the General Assembly decided in favor of a general ticket.[7]

Candidates

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Jackson

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Jackson was first nominated by the Tennessee General Assembly and was not expected to attract significant support. His rapid rise in popularity took the political establishment by surprise. Jackson's military exploits in the War of 1812, the Creek War, and the Seminole Wars made him a household name and a possible presidential candidate as early as 1818. The candidate's humble origins, regional identity, commitment to republicanism, and support for nationalist economic policies appealed broadly to settlers seeking a Western alternative to Clay; his supporters presented the general as a principled democrat untainted by corrupt associations with Eastern politicians and foreign monarchs.[9]

Jackson's opponents impeached his moral character, military record, and fitness for office. Anti-Jackson editors compared the general to historical military dictators and warned that his election would undermine civil control of the military. Jackson's explosive temper, predilection for violence and dueling, and disregard for the rule of law were said to disqualify him from the presidency.[10]

Lists of electors pledged to Jackson appeared as early as June. Confusion resulting from the lack of a central organization caused multiple competing Jackson tickets to circulate during the summer. To resolve this dilemma, Jackson's supporters held a state convention at Salem, Indiana, on September 16. With delegates from 13 of the state's 51 counties in attendance, the convention nominated a list of five electors and appointed a three-person state central committee. Local committees of correspondence were established in every county and township to conduct the campaign. The system developed by the Jacksonians for the 1824 campaign proved influential and became the model for future political campaigns in Indiana.[11]

Clay

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Clay was nominated by the Missouri, Kentucky, and Ohio state legislatures and hoped to emerged as the consensus choice of the Western states for president.[12] A veteran legislator and influential U.S. House speaker, Clay was the favorite candidate of many prominent Indiana politicians, including the governor of Indiana William Hendricks.[7] The support of the political establishment was transformed from an asset to a liability following the Panic of 1819, however. Popular anger was directed at the Second Bank of the United States, with which Clay was personally associated, and economic legislation seen to unfairly benefit special interest groups. Clay's public image as the preferred candidate of local and national elites harmed his standing with voters eager to punish elected leaders they blamed for the economic downturn.[13]

Supporters praised Clay's advocacy for Western interests, republican simplicity, and experience in domestic and international affairs.[14] Clay believed that his sponsorship of nationalist economic policies would outweigh other concerns with voters in the Old Northwest.[15]

Clay first hoped for a nomination by the Indiana General Assembly, but anti-caucus feeling in the state led his supporters to forgo this course. A list of electors pledged to Clay was printed by several newspapers and endorsed by the friendly Indianapolis Gazette. Supposedly the product of a grassroots movement for Clay in the state, the list was likely composed by a small group of Clay's legislative allies in Indianapolis.[16]

Adams

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Adams was nominated by the Democratic-Republicans in the Massachusetts General Court and received a majority of newspaper endorsements in Indiana.[17] A list of electors pledged to him was announced by his allies in April and distributed through the press.[18] The candidate's personal integrity, high moral character, sobriety, and abstention from dueling were all in his favor, and for a time he was seen as the leading rival to Clay for Indiana's electoral votes. Adams's religious convictions were an issue, with supporters affirming his reverence for the Bible and Christian teachings. Quakers and other opponents of slavery supported Adams as the only Northerner and non-slaveholder still in the race on Election Day.[19] His opponents attacked Adams's past ties to the Federalist Party, his alleged elitism, and his votes against territorial acquisition and federal aid for regional economic development while a member of the Senate.[14]

Others

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Calvin Fletcher recorded that in addition to Adams, Clay, and Jackson, William H. Crawford, John C. Calhoun, and DeWitt Clinton were discussed as potential presidential candidates during the fall of 1823.[20] Crawford's candidacy was irreparably damaged when he received the endorsement of the Democratic-Republican congressional nominating caucus in February 1824. The caucus nomination tarred Crawford as the candidate of the unpopular Eastern political establishment; before summer he had effectively dropped out of the race in Indiana, having failed to attract significant support.[21] Clinton's failure to win legislative approval for a bill to elect New York's electors by popular vote effectively ended his candidacy in February. Around this time, Calhoun also withdrew from the race in order to seek the vice presidency on both the Adams and Jackson tickets.[22] These developments left Adams, Clay, and Jackson as the only remaining candidates in Indiana.[21]

Campaign issues

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American System

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Economic nationalism and the need for internal improvements were important issues in the campaign. Clay was strongly associated with the American System, a protectionist economic program that called for tariffs on foreign manufactures to boost domestic industry and raise revenue for the construction of roads and canals in the West.[14] Adams's perceived weakness on the tariff and his reluctance to voice support for internal improvements damaged his standing with voters in the Old Northwest who prioritized the need for economic development. The candidate was viewed as personally sympathetic to nationalist policies, but unwilling to break with New England merchants who opposed federal spending to benefit the Western states.[23] Jackson's surrogates also sought to strengthen their candidate's regional appeal by associating him with popular calls for protection and internal improvements.[24] While Clay believed his position on the tariff would deliver the state, the unpopularity of his support for the Second Bank of the United States following the Panic of 1819 created an opening for Jackson to position himself as a nationalist alternative to the Kentuckian.[25]

Caucus system

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The congressional nominating caucus was increasingly the object of disapproval by 1824, as critics argued the practice of selecting candidates in a closed meeting of members of the United States Congress was undemocratic and potentially unconstitutional. Crawford's nomination by the Democratic-Republican congressional caucus in February disqualified him in the eyes of many Indiana voters, and he soon dropped out of the race in the state altogether. Sensitivity to the stigma attached to the caucus led Clay's supporters to forgo his nomination by the Indiana General Assembly. Tickets pledged to Adams and Clay were instead nominated informally through the press, while the Jackson electors were nominated by a state convention. Clay's backers attempted to make an issue of the fact that the Adams ticket originated with a meeting of friendly legislators; the Clay ticket, however, was similarly the product of a conference of Clay's allies in the legislature.[16]

Sectionalism

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Indiana's settler population came mostly from the Southern United States and the Mid-Atlantic region, while comparatively few Yankees settled in the state.[26] The importance of the Mississippi River to the frontier economy led residents of the Ohio River Valley to develop a Western regional identity in the first half of the nineteenth century.[27] Both Clay and Jackson appealed for votes on the basis of their residence in a Western state and promises to promote regional economic development through internal improvements.[10]

Politically, the Ohio marked the boundary between the slave states and free states;[28] recent confrontations over the future of slavery in the United States led some Hoosiers to prioritize cultural ties to the North ahead of regional economic self-interest. Clinton had some support as a Northern candidate prior to his withdrawal from the race; the principal beneficiary of anti-Southern sentiment, however, was Adams. The contest between Adams and Clay in Indiana forced Hoosiers to choose between their Western and Northern identities.[15]

Slavery

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Opposition to slavery played an important role in the early politics of Indiana. The Northwest Ordinance outlawed slavery in the territory north of the Ohio River from 1787, but extralegal slavery and legally-sanctioned involuntary servitude persisted into the 1820s.[29] In the aftermath of the Missouri Compromise, many Indiana voters, particularly Quakers, demanded the election of an antislavery president after decades of government by Virginian enslavers. Antislavery feeling primarily benefited Adams as the only Northern candidate following Clinton's withdrawal.[30] Clay's status as a slaveholder and his role in securing the admission of Missouri as a slave state damaged his candidacy with voters for whom abolitionism was an issue of primary importance.[14]

Opinion polling

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Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Andrew
Jackson
Democratic-
Republican 		Henry
Clay
Democratic-
Republican 		John Q.
Adams
Democratic-
Republican 		Others
Various
Western Sun & General Advertiser[31] July 5, 1824 305[a] 52% 8% 39% N/a
Western Sun & General Advertiser[32] August 2, 1824 200[b] 75% N/a 25% N/a
Western Sun & General Advertiser[33] August 2, 1824 466[c] 64% 32% 3% N/a
Western Sun & General Advertiser[34] 2–3 weeks preceding August 6, 1824 212[d] 57% 34% 8% 0%[e]
Western Sun & General Advertiser[35] Before October 23, 1824 465[f] 66% 19% 15% N/a

General election

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Summary

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Indiana chose five electors on a statewide general ticket. Nineteenth-century election laws required voters to elect each member of the Electoral College individually, rather than as a group. This sometimes resulted in small differences in the number of votes cast for electors pledged to the same presidential candidate, if some voters did not vote for all the electors nominated by a party.[36] This table compares the votes for the most popular elector pledged to each ticket, to give an approximate sense of the statewide result.

1824 United States presidential election in Indiana[37]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic-Republican Andrew Jackson
John C. Calhoun 		7,444 46.94
Democratic-Republican Henry Clay
Nathan Sanford 		5,321 33.5
Democratic-Republican John Quincy Adams
John C. Calhoun 		3,093 19.50
Total votes 15,858 100.00

Results

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1824 United States presidential election in Indiana[38]
Ticket Candidate Votes
Jackson Johnathan McCarty 7,444
Jackson John Carr 7,443
Jackson Elias McNamee 7,427
Jackson David Robb[g] 7,427
Jackson Samuel Milroy[h] 7,426
Clay James Rariden 7,321
Clay William W. Wick 7,317
Clay Moses Tabbs 7,316
Clay Martson G. Clark 7,313
Clay Walter Wilson 7,311
Adams David H. Maxwell 3,093
Adams Christopher Harrison 3,092
Adams Jesse Lynch Holman 3,091
Adams Isaac Blackford 3,083
Adams James Scott 3,071
Total
≈15,858

Results by county

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This table compares the result for the most popular Jackson, Clay, and Adams electors in each county. The totals presented thus differ slightly from the statewide results summary, which compares the results for the most popular elector pledged to each ticket statewide. The margin is the difference between the first and second highest-voted tickets.

1824 United States presidential election in Indiana by county[37]
County Andrew Jackson
Democratic-Republican 		Henry Clay
Democratic-Republican 		John Quincy Adams
Democratic-Republican 		Margin Total
Votes Percent Votes Percent Votes Percent Votes Percent
Allen 11 15.94 44 63.76 14 20.29 30 43.48 69
Bartholomew 96 44.65 99 46.05 20 9.30 3 1.40 215
Clark 589 60.22 156 15.95 233 23.82 356 3.64 978
Crawford 34 27.87 45 36.88 43 35.24 2 1.64 122
Daviess 114 50.67 92 40.89 19 8.44 22 9.78 225
Dearborn 668 57.73 122 10.54 367 31.72 301 26.02 1,157
Decatur 55 38.19 72 50.00 17 11.80 17 11.80 144
Dubois 32 54.24 18 30.51 9 15.25 14 23.73 59
Fayette 355 49.03 277 38.26 92 12.71 78 10.77 724
Floyd 216 56.25 50 13.02 118 30.73 98 25.52 384
Franklin 471 50.43 244 26.12 219 23.44 27 2.89 934
Gibson 133 41.96 169 53.31 15 4.73 36 11.36 317
Greene 28 56.00 10 20.00 12 24.00 16 32.00 50
Hamilton 4 8.89 31 68.89 10 22.22 21 46.67 45
Harrison 185 41.48 129 28.92 132 29.60 53 11.88 446
Hendricks 6 16.22 30 81.08 1 2.70 24 6.49 37
Henry 42 26.25 96 60.00 22 13.75 54 33.75 160
Jackson 176 68.75 23 8.98 57 22.26 119 46.48 256
Jefferson 298 40.82 371 50.82 61 8.36 73 10.00 730
Jennings 131 43.96 76 25.50 91 30.54 40 13.42 298
Johnson 28 35.00 38 47.50 14 17.50 10 12.5 80
Knox 171 35.26 280 57.73 34 7.01 109 22.47 485
Lawrence 228 76.00 44 14.67 28 9.33 184 61.33 300
Madison 6 9.38 54 84.38 4 6.25 48 75.00 64
Marion 99 30.18 213 64.94 16 4.88 114 34.76 328
Martin 44 39.28 30 26.78 38 33.93 6 5.36 112
Monroe 149 54.98 71 26.20 51 18.82 78 28.78 271
Montgomery 40 35.09 57 50.00 17 14.91 17 14.91 114
Morgan 71 43.29 83 50.61 10 6.07 12 7.32 164
Orange 213 50.84 145 34.61 61 14.56 68 16.23 419
Owen 34 27.64 77 62.60 12 9.76 43 34.96 123
Parke 45 27.61 111 68.10 7 4.29 66 40.49 163
Perry 5 19.23 12 46.15 9 34.62 3 11.54 26
Pike 62 44.93 73 52.90 3 2.17 9 6.52 138
Posey 173 41.79 228 55.07 13 3.14 55 13.28 414
Putnam 27 32.53 31 37.35 25 30.12 4 4.82 83
Randolph 62 43.97 7 4.96 72 51.06 10 7.09 141
Ripley 119 50.00 102 42.86 33 13.86 17 7.14 238
Rush 119 49.17 108 44.63 15 6.20 11 4.54 242
Scott 123 52.79 84 36.05 26 11.16 39 16.74 233
Shelby 144 56.03 104 40.47 9 3.50 40 15.56 257
Spencer 10 20.83 33 68.75 5 10.42 23 47.92 48
Sullivan 104 29.80 175 50.14 21 6.02 71 20.34 349
Switzerland 161 54.21 108 36.36 28 9.43 53 17.84 297
Union 254 53.59 135 28.48 85 17.93 119 25.10 474
Vanderburgh 32 26.45 56 46.28 33 27.27 23 19.01 121
Vermillion 2 2.35 79 92.94 4 4.71 75 88.24 85
Vigo 54 16.62 227 69.85 44 13.54 173 53.23 325
Warrick 54 49.09 45 40.91 11 10.00 9 8.18 110
Washington 669 67.17 55 5.52 272 27.31 397 39.86 996
Wayne 501 37.17 306 22.70 541 40.13 40 2.97 1,348
TOTAL 7,447 46.94 5,325 33.56 3,093 19.50 2,122 13.38 15,865

Results by congressional district

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The following table calculates the result in each of the state's three congressional districts based on the county returns as tabulated above.[37] District boundaries are from the Laws of Indiana for 1824.[41]

1824 United States presidential election in Indiana by congressional district[37]
District Andrew
Jackson 		Henry
Clay 		John Q.
Adams 		Representative[42]
1st 40.79% 48.47% 10.74% William Prince[i] (18th Congress)
Jacob Call[j] (18th Congress)
Ratliff Boon (19th Congress)
2nd 51.51% 28.13% 20.36% Jonathan Jennings
3rd 47.41% 27.27% 25.32% John Test

Maps

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  • Result for the most popular Jackson elector by county
    Result for the most popular Jackson elector by county
  • Result for the most popular Clay elector by county
    Result for the most popular Clay elector by county
  • Result for the most popular Adams elector by county
    Result for the most popular Adams elector by county

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Poll of a public meeting in Salem, Indiana.
  2. ^ Poll of voters at the local elections in Franklin Township, Floyd County, Indiana.
  3. ^ Poll of voters at the local elections in Daviess County, Indiana.
  4. ^ Poll of residents of Knox County, Indiana.
  5. ^ William H. Crawford
  6. ^ Poll of militia soldiers in Dearborn County, Indiana.
  7. ^ Including votes for "David Gibson" and "David Paten."[39]
  8. ^ Including votes for "John Milroy."[40]
  9. ^ Died prior to the election.
  10. ^ Won the special election for the unexpired term of William Prince, November 8, 1824.

References

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  1. ^ Madison 1986, p. 330.
  2. ^ Riker & Thornbrough 1960, pp. xvii–xviii.
  3. ^ Carmony 1998, pp. 476, 479, 481.
  4. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, pp. 108–110.
  5. ^ Carmony 1998, p. 482.
  6. ^ Riker & Thornbrough 1960, p. xvii.
  7. ^ a b c Carmony 1998, p. 476.
  8. ^ Thornbrough 1972, p. 100.
  9. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, p. 114; Carmony 1998, p. 481.
  10. ^ a b Carmony 1998, pp. 480–81.
  11. ^ Carmony 1998, pp. 478–79.
  12. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, p. 102.
  13. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, p. 110.
  14. ^ a b c d Carmony 1998, p. 480.
  15. ^ a b Ratcliffe 2015, p. 109.
  16. ^ a b Carmony 1998, pp. 477–78.
  17. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, p. 68; Howard 1967, p. 206.
  18. ^ Carmony 1998, p. 478.
  19. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, p. 112; Howard 1967, pp. 193–94.
  20. ^ Thornbrough 1972, p. 99.
  21. ^ a b Carmony 1998, p. 477.
  22. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, pp. 92, 168.
  23. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, p. 108–9.
  24. ^ Carmony 1998, p. 481.
  25. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, pp. 111–12.
  26. ^ Madison 1986, p. 59.
  27. ^ Bennett 2013, pp. 9–10, 1.
  28. ^ Bennett 2013, p. 3.
  29. ^ Finkelman 2015, pp. 64, 78.
  30. ^ Ratcliffe 2015, pp. 107–9.
  31. ^ "Presidential". Western Sun and General Advertiser. August 7, 1824.
  32. ^ "At an election [...]". Western Sun and General Advertiser. August 7, 1824.
  33. ^ "Presidential". Western Sun and General Advertiser. August 7, 1824.
  34. ^ "Presidential". Western Sun and General Advertiser. October 23, 1824.
  35. ^ "At the late regimental muster [...]". Western Sun and General Advertiser. October 23, 1824.
  36. ^ Lampi n.d.; Ratcliffe 2014, p. 57.
  37. ^ a b c d Riker & Thornbrough 1960, pp. 4–9.
  38. ^ Riker & Thornbrough 1960, pp. 4–9; Lampi 2012.
  39. ^ Riker & Thornbrough 1960, p. 9n3–4.
  40. ^ Riker & Thornbrough 1960, p. 9n2.
  41. ^ Indiana 1824, pp. 80–81.
  42. ^ Carmony 1998, pp. 484–85.

Bibliography

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Primary sources

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Secondary sources

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