For a span of twenty years, American democracy experienced large amounts of change due to many decisions made by those in power. Two important influences were the Jacksonian Economic Policy and the need for western expansion. One of these topics not only divided the American government, it also set the standards for said government into even modern time. The other topic not only gained more land for America, it also divided it in part of slavery. Either ways both of these influences played a major role in the development of American democracy, whether hindering, or helping it.
As America entered the 19th century, America's size grew immensely. More and more explorers were coming back from their journeys telling the tales of new land, and beautiful cropping area's and stretches of grounds, ripe for habitation. This started a new range of settlements, eventually creating what is now the mid west. Yet this all began to take place during the major political clash over slavery. Andrew Jackson, who was the president from 1829 to 1837, played a major part in all of this. The problem was more of a separation of culture and land than anything else. The north and south worked in completely separate ways that ended up dividing this country. Which of the states that had been founded would be slave states, and which of them would not? .
Western expansion did not take place exclusively in a time of America's progress. During a very important time of western exploration, the age of Jacksonian democracy, there was a major strife between the two ruling parties, the Jacksonite democrats and the anti-Jacksonite whigs. As these parties began to grow more mature and experience, the problem of slavery arose. So when a new state or colony was settled, the decision as to whether it would allow slavery or not became a major problem. The south was pro slavery due to crops and work which required man labor. The New England area and the north relied more on international shipping and exports and such.