The American Vote
First Party SystemCycle 7 / 60

1812

James Madison and the 1812 map.
James Madison (Democratic-Republican) defeated DeWitt Clinton (Federalist).

The 1812 U.S. presidential election was won by James Madison (Democratic-Republican) with 128 of 217 electoral votes, defeating DeWitt Clinton (Federalist). Electoral-vote margin: 39 (128 to 89). Turnout was 40.4%. The cycle falls in the First Party System era of American electoral history.

Madison
128 EV
Clinton
89 EV
0109 to win217
The map · 1812
11 states for D-R · 7 for Fed
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Open the what-if calculator → — flip states and re-count. A toy, not history.

Narrative

James Madison and the 1812 map

Madison won re-election during the early stages of the War of 1812 against Britain. His challenger, DeWitt Clinton of New York, ran as a fusion candidate backed by both anti-war Democratic-Republicans and Federalists. The election was competitive, with Clinton carrying most of New England and the Mid-Atlantic. Madison's victory ensured continuation of the war effort, though the conflict would ultimately end in a draw with the Treaty of Ghent in 1814.

Key issue

War of 1812 against Britain; trade and maritime rights

Notable

First election held during wartime; Clinton's fusion ticket came closer than any challenger since 1800

This summary was drafted with AI tools and has not yet been checked sentence by sentence. The vote table and the National Archives note on this page come from named sources; where they differ from the summary, rely on them. Tell us about an error.

State results · 1812

Electoral votes by state. State popular votes for 1812 are not yet published here.
1812 presidential election results by state: electoral votes
StateElectoral votesPopular vote
Connecticut1
9 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Delaware2
4 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Georgia3
8 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Kentucky4
12 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Louisiana5
3 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Maryland6
11 EV
Madison 6, Clinton 5
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Massachusetts7
22 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
New Hampshire8
8 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
New Jersey9
8 EV
Electors were chosen by the legislature.
New York10
29 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
North Carolina11
15 EV
Electors were chosen by the legislature.
Ohio12
7 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Pennsylvania13
25 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Rhode Island14
4 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
South Carolina15
11 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Tennessee16
8 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Vermont17
8 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.
Virginia18
25 EV
State popular vote not yet sourced.

Notes on the figures

  1. Connecticut State popular vote not yet sourced.
  2. Delaware State popular vote not yet sourced.
  3. Georgia State popular vote not yet sourced.
  4. Kentucky State popular vote not yet sourced.
  5. Louisiana State popular vote not yet sourced.
  6. Maryland State popular vote not yet sourced.
  7. Massachusetts State popular vote not yet sourced.
  8. New Hampshire State popular vote not yet sourced.
  9. New Jersey The state legislature chose the electors; there was no popular vote.
  10. New York State popular vote not yet sourced.
  11. North Carolina The state legislature chose the electors; there was no popular vote.
  12. Ohio State popular vote not yet sourced.
  13. Pennsylvania State popular vote not yet sourced.
  14. Rhode Island State popular vote not yet sourced.
  15. South Carolina State popular vote not yet sourced.
  16. Tennessee State popular vote not yet sourced.
  17. Vermont State popular vote not yet sourced.
  18. Virginia State popular vote not yet sourced.

SourceNo state popular-vote figures for 1812 are published here yet. How these figures were compiled