In the following days, Madison, while partnering with Franklin, did not forget to contact and liaise with Federalist high-ranking officials he had previously befriended.
After several informal exchanges to maintain their relationship, he would offer appropriate cabinet positions as leverage to win these people over.
At this time, the Federalist Party had not yet reached the point of collapse, but a small number of far-sighted individuals had already realized how much trouble aligning with the relatively powerful Republican Party would bring to the Federalist Party.
Many began to change their minds, wanting to reform their party's political ideals, but a small number were unwilling to abandon their political beliefs.
Under Madison's instigation and persuasion, those who were unwilling to abandon their original political ideals were naturally somewhat swayed.
But it was only a slight inclination; before the Presidential election results were announced, these people did not dare to risk defection and join the Republican Party, even if this party also aligned with their political ideals.
The results of the lobbying were still being tallied, but such a widespread outreach campaign naturally could not be kept secret.
The matter quickly reached the ears of other high-ranking Federalist officials.
Washington and Adams, while despising the Republican Party's actions, also quickly introduced remedial measures.
This was actually one of Madison's ideas to strike at the Federalist Party during the campaign, making them anxious to mend party unity, and thus unable to devote too much energy to the Presidential election, creating favorable conditions for his own election.
At the same time, the various measures introduced by the Federalist high command, if not implemented, would naturally cause dissatisfaction among the grassroots; if fully implemented, those who stayed for personal gain would inevitably be suspected by others.
Madison's talent did not lie in how strong his administrative ability was or how high his personal charisma was; it was simply his excellent eloquence and clear mind, especially his mastery of law, which greatly enhanced his ability for legal reasoning.
An ordinary person debating legal principles with him would surely be quickly convinced by him.
Of course, since he later became President, his other qualities and abilities must also have been excellent.
In this lobbying campaign, his talent was fully displayed, and the results were unexpectedly good for Charles.
He not only convinced a large number of Federalist lawyers and scholars to leave the party and join Madison, but also befriended a large number of Federalists who already had somewhat restless minds, making the entire Federalist Party somewhat unsettled.
Moreover, the impact of Madison's actions was not limited to the Federalist Party he targeted; it also caused a significant stir within the Republican Party.
Originally, although everyone respected Madison, it was mostly due to his achievements in drafting the Constitution.
There was still some slight dislike for him ultimately representing the Republican Party as the candidate for the second Vice President.
People like Morris and Hamilton, for example, were somewhat unconvinced internally because they lost to him in the party primaries.
Many ordinary party members also felt that his eventual success was entirely due to luck.
Under such suspicion, the atmosphere of the election within the entire Republican Party was not very unified.
However, the ability and influence Madison displayed in this campaign made many wise individuals within the party, at least people like Morris and Wilson, understand him, realizing that his abilities were indeed extraordinary and that he was fully qualified to represent the Republican Party in the Vice Presidential election.
Knowing that he was a strong man, these cunning politicians naturally could not expect to play tricks under him again.
They all honestly showed him an attitude of obedience, truly treating him as the future Vice President.
While the Federalist Party was in chaos, the Republican Party was united, cheering and striving for the Presidential election.
This was all Madison's credit.
Morris and Wilson, along with other founding fathers, proactively met with Franklin and Madison, the two Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates, to discuss cooperation in the election, and expressed their willingness to support them unconditionally.
Charles, as the chairman of the Republican Party, naturally also attended such a gathering.
Even Hamilton and Monroe, representatives of the backbone of young and middle-aged Republican Party members, also "attended" this discussion meeting.
They did not hold much political power, but they represented a large number of new-generation party members, and their influence was equally enormous.
Moreover, Charles also intended to train the two of them, so he naturally wanted them to participate in such political gatherings.
"Gentlemen, I am very pleased to see everyone united and working together to strategize for our Republican Party's Presidential candidate.
There is no doubt that your efforts today will be rewarded tomorrow!" Charles stated the purpose of the gathering frankly.
"Haha..." Everyone burst into laughter.
They did not express any aversion to Charles' bluntness.
"Then let's discuss the specific matters next: how to cooperate better in the election, how to come up with better strategies, and how to choose in the distribution of benefits after victory.
We can all speak freely in this confidential setting, but once we leave this room, it cannot be mentioned again!"
His strict confidentiality requirements did not draw any opposition from those present; everyone nodded in agreement.
Madison first spoke on behalf of Franklin, outlining the help they needed for the Presidential election.
"Charles, and gentlemen, the second Presidential election has now entered its most critical stage, but our election situation in the South remains not optimistic.
I even wanted to attend some political gatherings in the Southern states, but couldn't because of opposition from local officials and private citizens.
I hope you will pay appropriate attention to this matter and see if you can find a suitable solution."
Madison was now partnered with Franklin, and with Franklin being old and frail, he took on a large number of duties.
It was foreseeable that once they were officially elected, the Vice President's power and the affairs he might manage would be enormous.
Charles, Morris, Wilson, and others also attached great importance to the issue he raised.
"North and South Carolina can be skipped, but we must go to Virginia, as the most populous state, to campaign and lobby.
We will use both party pressure and judicial inquiries to compel the Democratic Party to open up, but it's difficult to coordinate civilian forces, so the two Presidential candidates will need to solve that themselves at the time!" Charles and Morris and others replied after a discussion.
"That's certainly not a problem; we can't rely on the party to solve everything!" Franklin, on behalf of Madison, was the first to agree.
Madison raised many such issues.
Morris, Wilson, and even Hamilton and Monroe all tried their best to coordinate or offer solutions.
Charles, as the party chairman, naturally goes without saying; he was the primary expert at 'catching' problems, and he could even frequently reframe the issues raised by Madison and others, using public opinion and other channels to turn them into matters beneficial to their side.
With the Republican Party generally holding a significant advantage, there were not many truly difficult problems that those present could not solve.
The issues Madison raised were actually minor ones; they were only brought up for discussion because he attached great importance to them.
Finally, with Franklin and Madison smiling contentedly, Charles brought up the last matter.
"So, shouldn't we also consider now, after successfully winning the Presidential election, the personnel and power distribution of our new cabinet?"
This was naturally a very sensitive issue, and only Charles, who had already been re-elected as a Representative as scheduled and successfully re-elected as Speaker of the House, and thus had no demands in this area, was suitable to bring it up directly.
Others, like Morris, had always been in the cabinet.
As for the young Hamilton and Monroe, they were the most likely to replace the Democratic Party and Federalist Party in the original cabinet, so for them to bring it up would be akin to openly asking for official positions, which was naturally unlikely.
But upon hearing Charles' words, all these people looked at the two "presumptive" Presidents with anticipation.
After this statement, Madison was the first to react.
"This is indeed a matter that can be considered, Charles, do you already have some plans?"
"No! No! Of course, I have no plans; I just think that deciding on the cabinet list now can boost party morale, making everyone more responsible and self-interested in the election process, and providing greater motivation to win the election."
Charles quickly shook his head.
Although he was the party chairman, he still couldn't openly usurp the power of Franklin, the President.
Hearing his words, which clearly distanced himself, Franklin smiled understandingly, but still spoke his mind:
"If victory is assured, I think the distribution of new cabinet positions this time should best be considered after the victory, as that will make it easier to find the best talents."
Upon hearing Franklin's words, Charles and the others all understood the old President's intention: he was still thinking of multi-party cooperation to form a unity cabinet.
Now everyone belonged to one political party, and each person was trying their best to protect their own interests; they were already busy fighting within their own party, so who would want to allocate a few of the limited cabinet positions to other political parties?
Hearing Franklin's reaction, everyone's expressions changed.
Even Madison, who was already the confirmed Vice President, expressed his disapproval.
"Mr. President, it's best to settle this matter now.
After the election, many of those who played dirty tricks against us during the campaign will likely change their tune immediately and come to us, wagging their tails and begging for favors.
If we allow such people into our cabinet, it will surely leave a bad impression on those who have consistently supported us, and bring very negative effects to our future elections and administration."
Actually, he was also thinking of himself.
After all, Franklin was old; completing this second Presidential term would put him over eighty years old, making it clearly unlikely for him to seek re-election, so he could basically disregard future elections.
But Madison was still young and would certainly participate in elections.
Madison had even thought of the third Presidential election, and at that time, he, as Vice President, would naturally have to run.
If he didn't consolidate his loyal supporters now and provide them with corresponding political rewards, it would clearly be unfavorable for his continued participation in future elections, so he quickly expressed his clear opposition.
"That's right! Benjamin, we are now in a party-based political system.
The entire party is fully supporting your election, and the distribution of these political benefits must also be carried out within our Republican Party!"
Charles, at this point, also dutifully fulfilled his responsibility as party chairman, fighting for the rights of his party members in front of President Franklin.
If he had said this normally, it would not only have made Franklin, the old good man, uncomfortable, but others might not have supported him either.
But at this particular moment, all other Republicans would support him.
"Yes! Mr. President, there is no doubt that since there is no Vice President from another political party in our cabinet this time, we no longer need to consider individuals from other political parties!" Morris was the second to respond.
Others, such as Wilson, also opposed Franklin's arrangement, and even Hamilton and Monroe, who had few opportunities to speak in front of the several prominent figures, found a chance to say a few words.
Actually, Franklin didn't explicitly say he wanted to bring people from other political parties into the cabinet, but his arrangement had already been clearly perceived by the astute politicians present.
Since the matter had already been brought up, Franklin naturally found it difficult to insist.
If he still wanted to decide the cabinet list after the election, then the other Republicans present would be the first to oppose him, Franklin, in the election.
"Alright! gentlemen, since you insist so much, I can also bring the matter of cabinet formation forward to discuss now.
Does anyone here have a preliminary draft?" Franklin looked towards Charles.