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In the election of 1824, none of the candidates were able to secure a majority of the electoral vote, thereby putting the outcome in the hands of the House of Representatives, which to the surprise of many elected John Quincy Adams over rival Andrew Jackson. Henry Clay was the Speaker of the House at the time, and he convinced Congress to elect Adams. Adams then made Clay his Secretary of State. Some people believe that an agreement was made ahead of time between the two, a Corrupt Bargain.

The election of 1876 is sometimes considered to be a second Corrupt Bargain. Four Southern states had contested vote counts, and for either candidate to win the election, they would need more electoral votes. In Congress, an agreement was made: Rutherford B. Hayes, the Republican candidate, would be elected under the following conditions:

• Hayes's cabinet would include one Southerner.
• The Union troops would withdraw from the South.
• A policy of noninterference from Hayes.
• Reconstruction declared finished.

With the Union troops gone, there was no security that the South would uphold the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments, so African-Americans were not guaranteed to be free. Hence it being declared a Corrupt Bargain.