Why did many Jackson supporters believe that the election of 1824 was a "corrupt bargain”?

Answer 1

Many Jackson supporters believed that the election of 1824 was a "corrupt bargain" because despite winning the popular vote, Andrew Jackson did not receive the majority of electoral votes. According to the Constitution, if no candidate received a majority, the House of Representatives would decide the winner from among the top three candidates. In this case, Henry Clay, who finished fourth in the electoral count, used his influence in the House to support John Quincy Adams, who ultimately won the presidency and appointed Clay as his Secretary of State.

This arrangement was seen by Jackson supporters as a backroom deal, manipulating the democratic process and denying Jackson the presidency that they believed he rightfully deserved. They viewed it as a collusion between Adams and Clay, labeling it a "corrupt bargain" to undermine the will of the people and maintain power within a small political elite. The belief in this corrupt bargain heightened the already intense rivalry between the supporters of Andrew Jackson and those of John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay.