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What constitutional crisis arose due to the tie in the election of 1800 between Thomas Jefferson and his running mate?

A) The House of Representatives had to break the tie.
B) The Senate had to break the tie.
C) The President made the final decision.
D) The Vice President broke the tie.

User Lomaxx
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Final answer:

The constitutional crisis from the 1800 election tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr was resolved by the House of Representatives, which elected Jefferson after many ballots.

Step-by-step explanation:

The constitutional crisis that arose due to the tie in the election of 1800 between Thomas Jefferson and his running mate Aaron Burr was resolved by the House of Representatives. The crisis highlighted a flaw in the original design of the Electoral College where both the President and Vice President were voted for separately, leading to a situation where candidates from the same party could end up with an equal number of electoral votes.

In the 1800 election, Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr each received the same number of electoral votes. The sitting House of Representatives, as per the Constitution, had the responsibility to break the tie. It was only after extensive deliberation and the influence of Alexander Hamilton's preference for Jefferson over Burr that Jefferson was elected President in the House on the thirty-sixth ballot. This event precipitated the proposal and ratification of the Twelfth Amendment, which provided a solution by coupling presidential candidates with their respective vice-presidential running mates on a unified ticket for future elections.

User Simonwh
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