<P> The 1824 presidential election marked the final collapse of the Republican - Federalist political framework . Considering the large numbers of candidates and strong regional preferences , it is not surprising that the results of the election of 1824 were inconclusive . The electoral map confirmed the candidates ' sectional support , with Adams winning outright in the New England states , Jackson gleaning success in states throughout the nation , Clay attracting votes from the West , and Crawford attracting votes from the eastern South . Andrew Jackson received more electoral and popular votes than any other candidate , but not the majority of 131 electoral votes needed to win the election . Since no candidate received the required majority of electoral votes , the presidential election was decided by the House of Representatives ( see `` Contingent election '' below ) . Meanwhile , John C. Calhoun easily defeated his rivals in the race for the vice presidency , as the support of both the Adams and Jackson camps quickly gave him an unassailable lead over the other candidates . This means that 1824 marks the only election in U.S. history where only the vice presidential candidate had been successfully elected to an executive office by Electoral College . Despite Clay himself finishing last in the electoral college , his running - mate , Nathan Sanford actually finished second behind Calhoun in the vice presidential vote , mostly because nearly half of the electors pledged to Crawford voted for candidates other than his designated running - mate , Nathaniel Macon , with New York senator Martin Van Buren being the main beneficiary . </P>
who won the most popular votes but not enough electoral votes in the presidential election of 1824
Andrew Jackson