In 1800, the nation again had a choice between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Adams had lost support through his attempt to remain neutral in the French-British conflict and through the passage of the Alien and Sedition Acts. His own Federalist Party was split, and Adams came in third. Jefferson and his running mate Aaron Burr each received the same number of electoral votes. Under the Constitution, the election was then thrown into the Federalist-controlled House of Representatives. After six days and thirty-six ballots, the House of...

Anti-Federalists, including Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, and George Mason, opposed the Constitution of 1787 primarily based on the fear that it would create an overly powerful central government and elite ruling class. Though Anti-Federalists failed to prevent the adoption of the Constitution, their objections did lead to the inclusion of the Bill of Rights. In 1791, with the ascendancy of the Federalist Party, which favored strong government and a loose interpretation of the Constitution, Anti-Federalists and others who favored small...

Aaron Burr (1756–1836) was an influential politican and the third vice president of the United States. Though he had a prominent career before his rivalry with Alexander Hamilton, Burr is best remembered for killing Hamilton in a duel in 1804. Burr was born in New Jersey and educated at Princeton (then the College of New Jersey). In 1775 he joined the Continental Army to fight in the Revolutionary War. After the war, Burr practiced law in New York City and in 1784 was elected to the state assembly. He continued his political career in the...