Andrew Jackson Spoils System Analysis

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In 1828, President Andrew Jackson led the United States to a greater democracy with his policies. Voting requirements had changed and allowed more citizens to participate in electing the presidential electors for their particular state. The spoils system and nominating conventions also played a part in increasing democracy by giving more Americans more opportunities to partake in politics and the government. At first, only white men who paid taxes and owned a certain amount of property could vote, so “most states had limited suffrage…”(TAJ, 448). These requirements were unfair to the common people who were not white and male or wealthy enough to pay all their taxes and own enough property. Andrew Jackson had promised that every citizen would have “equal protection and equal benefits”, which …show more content…

Jackson and the Democrats wanted to “shake up the federal bureaucracy, a system in which nonelected officials carry out laws”(TAJ, 449). By filling government positions with ordinary citizens, the government made decisions that were likely beneficial for the people. This move was considered foolish and unfair to the employees who were fired and replaced, but Andrew Jackson and his party thought otherwise. The Democrats believed that anyone was capable of handling a government job and that a “new set of federal employees would be good for democracy”(TAJ, 449). Citizens did not have to be elected to become a government official and were everyday people that others would come across on the street, which meant that they had a better understanding of what the Americans desired and what they did not desire from the government. In a way, the spoils system contributed to American democracy because it granted the common people the power to make important government decisions for their

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