Following the very controversial Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, President John Adams and the Federalist Party lost popularity among the American public. During the election 1800 Adams cited his excellent record on foreign policy and declared Jefferson a Pro-French radical. Jefferson criticized Adams for his wrongful imprisoning of newspaper editors and his party's disrespecting view of state rights. The Republicans won a decisive victory, taking control of both the Senate and the House and defeating Adams in the Presidential race. However, Jefferson and his running mate Aaron Burr received the exact same number of electoral college votes for the office of president, and the each member of the House of Representatives had to cast their votes in a tiebreaker. Unfortunately for Burr, he had not made many friends in Congress and Jefferson was elected as the third president in our nationŐs history. He later called it the "Revolution of 1800" for it was the first time in modern history that new political party seized control in a peaceful way. It was also a "revolution" because it marked the end of the Federalist Party and the beginning of a new, more democratic form of government.
