United States presidential election, 1804

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Presidential electoral votes by state
Presidential electoral votes by state

The United States presidential election of 1804 pitted incumbent Democratic-Republican President Thomas Jefferson against Federalist Charles Cotesworth Pinckney. Jefferson easily defeated Pinckney in the first presidential election conducted following the ratification of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Under the rules of the Twelfth Amendment, presidential electors were required to specify in their votes their choice for President and Vice President; previously, electors voted only for President, with the person who came in second becoming the Vice President. George Clinton was elected Vice President and would go on to serve under both Jefferson and his successor, James Madison.

Contents

[edit] Background

Although the 1800 election had been close, Jefferson had steadily gained popularity during his term. American trade had boomed because the French Revolutionary Wars in Europe had been temporarily suspended. The Louisiana Purchase was heralded as a great achievement.

[edit] General election

Jefferson was renominated and Governor George Clinton of New York replaced Aaron Burr as his running mate. The Federalists chose Pinckney and former United States Senator Rufus King of New York to run against him. Attacks on Jefferson's policies proved fruitless; Jefferson's victory was overwhelming, even winning most of the states in the Federalist heartland of New England.

[edit] Results

Presidential Candidate Party Home State Popular Vote(a), (b) Electoral Vote Running Mate Running Mate's
Home State		 Running Mate's
Electoral Vote
Count Percentage
Thomas Jefferson Democratic-Republican Virginia 104,110 72.8% 162 George Clinton New York 162
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney Federalist South Carolina 38,919 27.2% 14 Rufus King New York 14
Total 143,029 100.0% 176 Total 176
Needed to win 89 Needed to win 89

Source (Popular Vote): U.S. President National Vote. Our Campaigns. (February 10, 2006).

Source (Electoral Vote): Electoral College Box Scores 1789–1996. Official website of the National Archives. (July 30, 2005).

(a) Only 11 of the 17 states chose electors by popular vote.
(b) Those states that did choose electors by popular vote had widely varying restrictions on suffrage via property requirements.

[edit] Electoral college selection

Method of choosing Electors State(s)
each Elector appointed by state legislature Connecticut
Delaware
Georgia
New York
South Carolina
Vermont
each Elector chosen by voters statewide New Hampshire
New Jersey
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
Virginia
state is divided into electoral districts, with one Elector chosen per district by the voters of that district Kentucky
Maryland
North Carolina
Tennessee
  • two Electors chosen by voters statewide
  • one Elector chosen per Congressional district by the voters of that district
 Massachusetts

-Since this election, Vermont continued to vote for Jefferson' party in future Presidential elections.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] Navigation

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See also: House • Senate • Governors
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