Question

the table shows the voting results of the 1824 presidential election. recall how many votes a candidate needs to win a presidential election.

	popular vote	electoral vote
adams	31%	84
crawford	11%	41
clay	13%	37

based on the table, what conclusions can be drawn about jacksons candidacy for president?

• he won the largest number of electoral votes and became president.
• he won the largest percentage of the popular vote and became president.
• he failed to win the number of electoral votes to win the presidency.
• he failed to win large enough percentage of the popular vote to win the presidency.

Explanation:

To win a presidential election, a candidate needs a majority of electoral votes (more than half of the total electoral votes). First, calculate the total electoral votes: \(99 + 84 + 41 + 37 = 261\). The majority would be more than \(\frac{261}{2}=130.5\), so at least 131 electoral votes. Jackson got 99 electoral votes, which is less than 131.

• Option 1: Jackson didn't become president (the election went to the House), so this is wrong.
• Option 2: Jackson didn't become president, so this is wrong.
• Option 3: Since 99 < 131, he failed to get enough electoral votes to win, this is correct.
• Option 4: Jackson had the highest popular vote percentage (41%), so this is wrong.

Answer:

He failed to win the number of electoral votes to win the presidency.