The First Political Parties

The Federalist political party, led by John Adams and Alexander Hamilton, was able to get the Bank of the United States, the Jay Treaty, and an undeclared war against France all approved over the objections of the Democratic-Republicans, who were led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. These defeats motivated the Democratic-Republicans to increase their public support, which they did when their leader, Thomas Jefferson, was elected president in 1800. After a strong start by the Federalists, the Democratic-Republicans became a rival political party. The issues brought on by westward expansion led to continued disagreements between the two political parties.