Definition of turnbuckle. : a device that usually consists of a link with screw threads at both ends, that is turned to bring the ends closer together, and that is used for tightening a rod or stay.
Such splintering had not yet led to formal party organization, but later the faction led by Andrew Jackson would evolve into the Democratic Party, while the factions led by John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay would become the National Republican Party and later the Whig Party.
For the first time, the major political parties held national conventions to nominate their candidates. Democrat Andrew Jackson was again nominated and was opposed by National Republican Henry Clay. Another first was the presence of a third party candidate for president.