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Presidential Election of 1800: A Resource Guide

After Thomas Jefferson and his running-mate, Aaron Burr, tied in the Electoral College vote, Jefferson was elected president by the House of Representatives. This guide contains digital materials, external websites, and a print bibliography.

Introduction

Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) defeated John Adams (Federalist) in the presidential election of 1800 by an electoral vote of seventy-three to sixty-five. However, because electors could not distinguish between president and vice president when voting prior to the Twelfth Amendment (1804), Jefferson and his running mate, Aaron Burr, received the same number of votes in the Electoral College. With the vote tied, the presidential election was then decided by the House of Representatives as stipulated in Article II, Section 1, of the U.S. Constitution. After thirty-six ballots, the Federalist-controlled House finally elected Thomas Jefferson president on February 17, 1801.

The digital collections of the Library of Congress contain a wide variety of material associated with the presidential election of 1800, including manuscripts, broadsides, newspapers, and government documents. This guide compiles links to digital materials related to the presidential election of 1800 that are available throughout the Library of Congress website. In addition, it provides links to external websites focusing on the 1820 election and a selected bibliography.