<P> The 1824 presidential election was the first election in American history in which the popular vote mattered, as 18 states chose presidential electors by popular vote in 1824 (six states still left the choice up to their state legislatures). When the final votes were tallied in those 18 states, Andrew Jackson polled 152,901 popular votes to John Quincy Adams's 114,023; Henry Clay won 47,217, and William H. Crawford won 46,979 . The electoral college returns, however, gave Jackson only 99 votes, 32 fewer than he needed for a majority of the total votes cast . Adams won 84 electoral votes followed by 41 for Crawford, and 37 for Clay . All four candidates in the election identified with the Democratic - Republican Party . </P> <P> As no candidate secured the required number of votes (131 total) from the Electoral College, the election was decided by the House of Representatives under the provisions of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution . Only the top three candidates in the electoral vote were admitted as candidates in this contingent election . Henry Clay, as the candidate with the fewest electoral votes, was eliminated from the deliberation . As Speaker of the House, however, Clay was still the most important player in determining the outcome of the election . The election was held on February 9, 1825, with each state having one vote, as determined by the wishes of the majority of each state's congressional representatives . Adams emerged as the winner with a one - vote margin of victory . Most of Clay's supporters, joined by several old Federalists, switched their votes to Adams in enough states to give him the election . Soon after his inauguration as President, Adams appointed Henry Clay as his secretary of state . This result became a source of great bitterness for Jackson and his supporters, who proclaimed the election of Adams a "corrupt bargain," and were inspired to create the Democratic Party . </P> <P> The 1876 presidential election was one of the most contentious and controversial presidential elections in American history . The result of the election remains among the most disputed ever, although there is no question that Democrat Samuel J. Tilden of New York outpolled Ohio's Republican Rutherford B. Hayes in the popular vote, with Tilden winning 4,288,546 votes and Hayes winning 4,034,311 . Tilden was, and remains, the only candidate in American history who lost a presidential election despite receiving a majority (not just a plurality) of the popular vote . </P> <P> After a first count of votes, Tilden won 184 electoral votes to Hayes' 165, with 20 votes unresolved . These 20 electoral votes were in dispute in four states: in the case of Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina, each party reported its candidate had won the state, while in Oregon one elector was declared illegal (as an "elected or appointed official") and replaced . The question of who should have been awarded these electoral votes is at the heart of the ongoing debate about the election of 1876 . </P>

Has a president ever been elected by popular vote