Jeffersonian vs. Jacksonian

At its birth in the mid-1820s, the Jacksonian, or Democratic, Party was a loose coalition of diverse men and interests united primarily by a practical vision. So in review, these were the first of the two major parties we know today as the democrats and the republicans. The Jacksonian democracy was for more government power and believed more in dictation. In this period there were no distinct parties on the national level. His excellence as candidate derived in part from the fact that he appeared to have no known political principles of any sort. Crawford--the leading presidential aspirants--all portrayed themselves as "Republicans," followers of the party of the revered Jefferson. A truly self-made man of will and courage, he personified for many citizens the vast power of nature and Providence, on the one hand, and the majesty of the people, on the other.

Jackson, like most of his leading antagonists, was in fact a wealthy man of conservative social beliefs. In his many volumes of correspondence he rarely referred to labor. If compared to today’s standards, the Jeffersonian democracy is most like today’s Republican the Jeffersonian democracy wanted to limit the powers of government and to give people power and trust. Opponents who branded him enemy to property and order only gave credence to the claim of Jackson's supporters that he stood for the poor against the rich, the plain people against the interests. His very weaknesses, such as a nearly uncontrollable temper, were political strengths. Calhoun, John Quincy Adams, and William H. The National Republicans were the followers of Adams and Clay; the Whigs, who emerged in 1834, were, above all else, the party dedicated to the defeat of Jackson.