4.3The Adams years and a peaceful transfer

John Adams, a Federalist, won the presidency in 1796. His term was dominated by conflict with France and by bitter partisanship at home. In 1798 the Federalist Congress passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, which restricted immigrants and criminalized harsh criticism of the government—measures Republicans denounced as tyranny.

Jefferson and Madison responded with the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, arguing that states could challenge unconstitutional federal laws. The election of 1800 was ferocious, but when Jefferson won, power passed peacefully from one party to its rival for the first time. This "Revolution of 1800" proved that a republic could change rulers by ballots, not bloodshed.