The American Vision © 2008

"The First Political Party Transition"

Introduction
A fierce contest for the presidency raged between two political parties. Pronounced differences between the 12-year incumbent party and the challenging party fueled an intense rivalry, and the two political forces insulted each other bitterly throughout the campaign. Propaganda depicted one group as a band of mad men led by a dangerous radical, while the other party's candidate was labeled a tyrant. Does this sound like a recent election? Surprisingly, this heated campaign marked one of the first presidential elections in the history of the United States. This election resulted in the first time under the new Constitution that executive power transferred from one political party to another. Log on to "The Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson: the first political party transition" to find out how the early political parties handled the first transition of executive power.

Destination Title: The White House Historical Association

Note: Clicking on the link above will launch a new browser window.
Need help using your browser for this activity? Click here for tips.

Directions
Start at The White House Historical Association Web site.

• Click on Classroom.
• Click on Grades 9-12.
• Click on The Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson: first political party transition.
• Browse through the lesson, taking notes as you go.

1			Identify the leading Federalists and Republicans in the 1790s and the issues on which they were divided.
2			Why did some believe that the inauguration of 1801 would cause a national crisis?
3			How did early party politics force changes in the electoral system?
4			How did Jefferson ease the transition?
5			Using what you have learned about the 1800 election and the 1801 inauguration, on a separate sheet of paper sketch a political cartoon that illustrates the tensions between the first political parties.