What happens when no candidate receives the majority of the electoral votes What two years did the election get decided this way?

Answer 1

Andrew Jackson lost the election of 1824 even though he received the largest number of popular votes and electoral votes. In the 1824 presidential election an individual needed to receive at least 131 electoral votes out of the 261 total electoral votes. Andrew Jackson received 99 electoral votes, John Quincy Adams received 84 electoral votes, William Crawford received 41 electoral votes, and Henry Clay received 37 electoral votes. The popular vote totals were Andrew Jackson 151,271, John Quincy Adams 113,122, Henry Clay 47,531, and William Crawford 40,856. Since no candidate received the required majority of 131 electoral votes, the president was elected by the U.S. House of Representatives in accordance with the Twelfth Amendment of the United States Constitution. John Quincy Adams won the election in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Thomas Jefferson won the 1800 presidential election defeating John Quincy Adams, Aaron Burr, Charles Pinckney, and John Jay. In 1800 electors voted for two individuals and did not distinguish between their presidential and vice-presidential choices until the passage of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1803. The recipient of the most electoral votes in 1800 would become president and the runner-up vice-president. Thomas Jefferson received 73 electoral votes, his running-mate Aaron Burr received 73 electoral votes, John Quincy Adams received 65 electoral votes, Charles Pinckney received 64 electoral votes, and John Jay received 1 electoral vote. Although John Quincy Adams ran as Thomas Jefferson's main opponent in the general election, running-mates Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr received the same number of electoral votes. The election was decided in the House of Representatives, with 10 State delegations voting for Jefferson, 4 voting for Burr and 2 making no choice. Thomas Jefferson became President and his running-mate Aaron Burr became Vice President.

Answer 2

When no candidate receives the majority of the electoral votes (270 out of 538), the election is decided by the House of Representatives. Each state delegation in the House has one vote, and the candidate who receives the majority of state votes (26 out of 50) becomes the President. In the modern era, this situation occurred in 1800 and 1824.