How Democratic was Andrew Jackson?
How Democratic Was Andrew Jackson?
Democracy is defined as rule by the people, either exercised directly or through elected representatives. Politically, being a democracy basically means the people have a say in government. A democratic person would typically believe in voting rights for all adults, the right to run for political office, freedom of speech, majority rule, and so on. Andrew Jackson is the main political leader connected so often with this type of government, and he’s said to be the founder of the Democratic Party, but he certainly was not democratic in all circumstances. The political and economic aspects were fairly democratic, although could be undemocratic as well, but his Native American policies did not show democracy whatsoever. Politically, Jackson had many true democratic beliefs, such as universal male suffrage. He had lowered the voting qualifications so all white males, regardless of property ownership, could vote. Also, as shown in the Methods of Electing Presidential Electors chart (Document 1), the number of states using voting from the people were rising compared to the number who used the legislature. In 1816, before Jackson’s influence, all admitted states had selected electors through the legislature, and nearing the end of Jackson’s presidency in 1836, all states but one used selection by the people. Another example of Jackson’s democratic beliefs would be The Spoils System he established, which replaced corrupt federal employees with supporters in public office. Jackson says in his letter to Congress (Document 6) “The duties of all public offices are…so plain and simple that men of intelligence may readily qualify…no one man has any more…right to (government jobs) than another.” This was meant to give all men the right to run for office, which is a basic democratic idea, but the opposing side should also be recognized that it could be undemocratic if uncontrolled. Overall, even though some of his ideas could be interpreted
Democracy is defined as rule by the people, either exercised directly or through elected representatives. Politically, being a democracy basically means the people have a say in government. A democratic person would typically believe in voting rights for all adults, the right to run for political office, freedom of speech, majority rule, and so on. Andrew Jackson is the main political leader connected so often with this type of government, and he’s said to be the founder of the Democratic Party, but he certainly was not democratic in all circumstances. The political and economic aspects were fairly democratic, although could be undemocratic as well, but his Native American policies did not show democracy whatsoever. Politically, Jackson had many true democratic beliefs, such as universal male suffrage. He had lowered the voting qualifications so all white males, regardless of property ownership, could vote. Also, as shown in the Methods of Electing Presidential Electors chart (Document 1), the number of states using voting from the people were rising compared to the number who used the legislature. In 1816, before Jackson’s influence, all admitted states had selected electors through the legislature, and nearing the end of Jackson’s presidency in 1836, all states but one used selection by the people. Another example of Jackson’s democratic beliefs would be The Spoils System he established, which replaced corrupt federal employees with supporters in public office. Jackson says in his letter to Congress (Document 6) “The duties of all public offices are…so plain and simple that men of intelligence may readily qualify…no one man has any more…right to (government jobs) than another.” This was meant to give all men the right to run for office, which is a basic democratic idea, but the opposing side should also be recognized that it could be undemocratic if uncontrolled. Overall, even though some of his ideas could be interpreted