He managed the caucus that nominated Crawford and suffered a crushing blow when a paralytic stroke effectively eliminated his candidate from the race. Van Buren's own New York legislature cast the state's electoral vote for John Quincy Adams, and when the House of Representatives gave Adams the presidency, it was the New York delegation that furnished him the necessary vote for a majority on the first ballot. The Erie Canal opened. This had been one of Van Buren's projects, and cost the state seven million dollars. The development of the canal also led to the creation of the nation's first political system, patronage.
Patronage is a system where a political leader hires and fires whoever they want.
Van Buren used this to his advantage throughout his career, including during the creation of the Erie Canal. In exchange for employment on the project, people were expected to do favors for the Bucktails. It was later known as the Albany Regency. Reelected to the Senate in 1827, Van Buren became the leader of an anti-Adams coalition, and after boarding Andrew Jackson's bandwagon, he was instrumental in putting together the jangling coalition that carried Old Hickory to the presidency in 1828. Van Buren's own position in New York had been made easier by the sudden death of DeWitt Clinton, and in the 1828 campaign he ran successfully for the governorship on the Jackson ticket.