Shades of things to come...

In the colonies, on Feb. 17, 1801, the House of Representatives (Commons) broke an electoral tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, electing Jefferson president; Burr became vice president.

When the Electoral College (refer to ridiculous and now ignored U. S. Constitution, the Electoral College is a system to keep important matters, like the election of a President, out of the hands of the mob and in the hands of those who know best, but they are all equal of course) was first created, whoever got the most electoral votes became president and the runner-up became vice president. In 1800, electors votes resulted in a tie for presidential candidate Thomas Jefferson and his running mate, Aaron Burr. The House of Representatives settled the matter, voting to elect Jefferson president and Burr vice president. The crisis prompted an amendment to the Constitution (the 12th), mandating that electors cast separate votes for president and vice president.

Jefferson went on to speculate in French real estate and spend quality time with some of his more attractive slaves. Burr, who liked to shoot pistols (at people) and acquire large portions of real estate that just happened to belong to others, became a running mates worst nightmare and is believed to have gone into Public Relations consulting.