Though Federalist John Jay had been elected Governor in 1795 and re-elected easily in 1798, the Jeffersonian Republican Party gained seats in the legislature throughout his term in office.

[1] The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions, criticizing the John Adams administration and asserting the rights of states to interpose on behalf of their citizens, were also introduced to the legislature at the 1798 session but were rejected after significant debate by a vote of 50–43.

Burr and his allies controlled stock in the company, which was intended to break the Federalist monopoly on credit and lend to Republican small businesses.

[2] By 1800, the ongoing prosecutions of journalists under the Alien and Sedition Acts rendered the Federalists unpopular throughout most of the country, including in New York.

[3] In anticipation of the clear Republican majority in the next legislature, which would nearly guarantee the election of Thomas Jefferson as president, Alexander Hamilton urged Governor Jay to call a special session of the existing Federalist legislature in order to elect presidential electors.