The Power of Patronage

Andrew Jackson took office after a campaign that included a promise to increase opportunities for Americans to participate in our democratic system. The bureaucracy he inherited in 1829 reflected a tradition of bureaucratic appointment and retention established by George Washington more than 30 years earlier. The small number of skilled and experienced administrators and their apprenticed heirs worked in anonymity with little fear of being removed from their jobs.

To the new Jackson administration, this condition posed problems for two very important concerns: First, it challenged Jackson's ability to implement his programs with people loyal and beholden to him. Second, Jackson, who was elected to office after property qualifications were no longer necessary to vote, wanted to reward his legions of political supporters. This was the beginning of widespread patronage, a system in which winning politicians rewarded their supporters with the "spoils" of office.

Although the federal bureaucracy under Jackson was committed to the use of patronage, Jackson appointed only about 2000 supporters to mostly low-level positions during his first term. Moreover, the size and activity of the federal government remained limited. It wasn't until after the Civil War that the negative aspects of the spoils system became a target of major reform.