sep 23, 1816 - Election of 1816
Description:
An election in which Democratic-Republican James Monroe defeated Federalist Rufus King and became the 5th president. James Madison declined to run for a third term, following the precedent of Washington and Jefferson. He and Jefferson supported Monroe to become the Republican nominee, beating out William Crawford. The Federalists, who had not seen any presidents from their party since John Adams, fielded Rufus King. Monroe ran with Daniel D. Tompkins, while King selected John E. Howard as his running mate. The election was fairly one-sided; Democratic-Republicans received credit for ending the War of 1812 in a pseudo-victory, while the Federalists lost nearly all of their support after the 1814 Hartford Convention, which made them appear unpatriotic in the aftermath of the war. Madison had also implemented several key Federalist policies during his presidency, such as protective tariffs. This left the Federalists with little to campaign on to distinguish themselves from the Republicans. Indeed, not even King believed he had much of a chance of winning, and did not take the election seriously. There was a dispute in Congress over whether or not to count Indiana's votes, as they had officially become a state a few weeks after the final ballots were cast. They decided to count them, claiming that the resolution passed in late December was actually recognizing that Indian had been an official state since June of that year. Monroe swept most of the country, taking every state but Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Delaware.
Main issues: War of 1812, Hartford Convention
Voter turnout: 16.9%
Significance: Last election in which the Federalists fielded a candidate
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