One of the most important moments for the Democratic Party happened on May 21, 1832, when delegates that supported President Andrew Jackson held the first official convention of the party. This event set trend that became regular occurrence far into the next century.
The rise of the Democratic Party started on that day, and it has become one of the most influential political organization ever. Before the elections that were held in 1824 and 1828, it was the Congress that pointed presidential nominees. This was changed, and the regional candidates wanted the presidency that wasn’t in the caucus system.
This is something that changed American history and it was the start of the national conventions that were held before the elections. The first of those conventions was held by Anti-Masonic Party in 1831, but this organization didn’t last long. What they did manage to do is to gather a total of 110 delegates from 13 states and choose William Wirt as their presidential nominee.
In December 1831, National Republicans party organized their convention and Henry Clay, the leader, was elected as the presidential candidate. Among the most prominent members of NR also were former President John Quincy Adams and Daniel Webster.
On the other hand, Democratic Party convention that was held in 1832 ended with second term nomination of Andrew Jackson. One change, in this case, was the fact that Martin Van Buren was chosen for the Vice President position and not the John C. Calhoun that occupied that position in the previous term.
The result was quite satisfying for Democrats as Jackson easily won his second term. Both of the opposition parties didn’t last long, but it also meant the beginning of the Whig Party.
As we already mentioned, John Quincy Adams managed to beat Jackson and became the sixth president of the United States in 1825. Contingent elections were held as no candidate managed to take the majority of votes. Since Clay decided to back Adams, he did get the support of 13 of 24 states and earn the victory over Johnson in 1825. As an award for the support, Clay was appointed as a Secretary of State, and Jackson’s supporters called this a “Corrupt Bargain.” It is a good question what would happen if John Quincy did adapt to the new ways of politics and marketing. Could he win the next elections? Adams refused to go that way and consequently he lost the battle for his second term to Jackson.
