The spoils system (also known as a patronage system) is a practice in which a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its supporters, friends, and relatives as a reward for working toward victory, and as an incentive to keep working for the party. The term was derived from the phrase “to the victor belong the spoils” by New York Senator William L. Marcy, referring to the victory of Andrew Jackson in the election of 1828, with the term spoils meaning goods or benefits taken from the loser in a competition, election or military victory.