1788–89 United States presidential election
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 Presidential election results map. Numbers indicate the number of electoral votes allotted to each state. |
The United States presidential election of 1789 was the first presidential election in the United States of America. Elections held in this manner were described by Article II, Sec. 1, Clause 3 of the newly established Constitution. Before this time, the United States had no Presidential office but instead invested limited power in the unelected office of President of the United States in Congress Assembled under the Articles of Confederation. This position was the chair of the United States Congress and can be best compared to the current position of the Speaker of the House or the President of the Senate.
For all intents and purposes, George Washington ran unopposed for election as President. Under the system then in place, each voting elector cast two votes, and the recipient of the greatest number of votes was elected President, providing they equaled or exceeded half the total number of electors. The runner-up became Vice President. At that time, the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution had not been passed and thus the electoral system for that era differs from most elections. Washington was now very popular, as he successfully presided over the Philadelphia Convention and made the US, which was weakened by the Articles of Confederation, much stronger through the new US Constitution.
The recipient of 34 electoral votes, John Adams of Massachusetts, finished second in voting and as such was elected Vice President of the United States.
The Candidates
- John Adams, former Minister to Great Britain from Massachusetts
- James Armstrong, politician from Georgia
- George Clinton, Governor of New York
- Robert H. Harrison, judge from Maryland
- John Hancock, Governor of Massachusetts and former President of Congress
- Samuel Huntington, Governor of Connecticut
- John Jay, Secretary of Foreign Affairs from New York
- Benjamin Lincoln, Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
- John Milton, Secretary of State of Georgia
- John Rutledge, former Governor of South Carolina
- Edward Telfair, former governor of Georgia
- George Washington, retired Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army from Virginia
General election
In the absence of conventions, there was no formal nomination process. The framers of the Constitution had presumed that Washington would be the first President, and once he agreed to come out of retirement to accept the office, there was no opposition to him. Individual states chose their electors, who voted all together for Washington when they met.
Electors used their second vote to cast a scattering of votes, many voting for someone besides Adams less out of opposition to him than to prevent Adams from matching Washington's total.[citation needed]
Only ten states out of the original thirteen cast electoral votes in this election. North Carolina and Rhode Island were ineligible to participate as they had not yet ratified the United States Constitution. New York failed to appoint its allotment of eight electors because of a deadlock in the state legislature.
Results
Popular vote
| Slate | Popular Vote(a), (b), (c) | |
|---|---|---|
| Count | Percentage | |
| Federalist electors | 35,866 | 92.4% |
| Anti-Federalist electors | 2,952 | 7.6% |
| Total | 38,818 | 100.0% |
Source: U.S. President National Vote. Our Campaigns. (February 11, 2006).
(a) Only 6 of the 10 states casting electoral votes chose electors by any form of popular vote.
(b) Less than 1.3% of the population voted: the 1790 Census would count a total population of 3.0 million with a free population of 2.4 million and 600,000 slaves in those states casting electoral votes in this election.
(c) Those states that did choose electors by popular vote had widely varying restrictions on suffrage via property requirements.
Electoral vote
| Presidential candidate | Party | Home state | Popular vote(a), (b), (c) | Electoral vote(d), (e), (f) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | Percentage | ||||
| George Washington | (none) | Virginia | 38,818 | 100.0% | 69 |
| John Adams | (none) | Massachusetts | — | — | 34 |
| John Jay | (none) | New York | — | — | 9 |
| Robert H. Harrison | (none) | Maryland | — | — | 6 |
| John Rutledge | (none) | South Carolina | — | — | 6 |
| John Hancock | (none) | Massachusetts | — | — | 4 |
| George Clinton | (none) | New York | — | — | 3 |
| Samuel Huntington | (none) | Connecticut | — | — | 2 |
| John Milton | (none) | Georgia | — | — | 2 |
| James Armstrong(g) | (none) | Georgia(g) | — | — | 1 |
| Benjamin Lincoln | (none) | Massachusetts | — | — | 1 |
| Edward Telfair | (none) | Georgia | — | — | 1 |
| Total | 38,818 | 100.0% | 138 | ||
| Needed to win | 35 | ||||
Source: "Electoral College Box Scores 1789–1996". National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved July 30, 2005. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
(a) Only 6 of the 10 states casting electoral votes chose electors by any form of popular vote.
(b) Less than 1.3% of the population voted: the 1790 Census would count a total population of 3.0 million with a free population of 2.4 million and 600,000 slaves in those states casting electoral votes in this election.
(c) Those states that did choose electors by popular vote had widely varying restrictions on suffrage via property requirements.
(d) The New York legislature failed to appoint its allotted 8 electors in time, so there were no voting electors from New York.
(e) Two electors from Maryland did not vote.
(f) One elector from Virginia did not vote and another elector from Virginia was not chosen because an election district failed to submit returns.
(g) The identity of this candidate comes from The Documentary History of the First Federal Elections (Gordon DenBoer (ed.), Univ of Wisconsin Press, 1984, p. 441). Several respected sources, including the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress and the Political Graveyard, instead show this individual to be James Armstrong of Pennsylvania. However, primary sources, such as the Senate Journal, list only Armstrong's name, not his state. Skeptics observe that Armstrong received his single vote from a Georgia elector. They find this improbable because Armstrong of Pennsylvania was not nationally famous—his public service to that date consisted of being a medical officer during the American Revolution and, at most, a single year as a Pennsylvania judge.
Breakdown by ticket
| Presidential candidate | Running mate | Electoral vote |
|---|---|---|
| George Washington | John Adams | 34 |
| George Washington | John Jay | 9 |
| George Washington | Robert H. Harrison | 6 |
| George Washington | John Rutledge | 6 |
| George Washington | John Hancock | 4 |
| George Washington | George Clinton | 3 |
| George Washington | Samuel Huntington | 2 |
| George Washington | John Milton | 2 |
| George Washington | James Armstrong | 1 |
| George Washington | Benjamin Lincoln | 1 |
| George Washington | Edward Telfair | 1 |
Electoral college selection
| Method of choosing electors | State(s) |
|---|---|
| each elector appointed by the state legislature | Connecticut Georgia New Jersey New York (a) South Carolina |
|
Massachusetts |
| each elector chosen by voters statewide; however, if no candidate wins majority, state legislature appoints elector from top two candidates | New Hampshire |
| state is divided into electoral districts, with one elector chosen per district by the voters of that district | Virginia (b) |
(a) New York's legislature deadlocked, so no electors were chosen.
(b) One electoral district failed to chose an elector.
See also
- United States House election, 1789
- History of the United States (1789-1849)
- First United States Congress
References
- Books
-
- Jenson, Merrill, et al., eds. (1976–1989). The Documentary History of the First Federal Elections, 1788–1790. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-06690-8.
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- Jenson, Merrill, et al., eds. (1976–1989). The Documentary History of the First Federal Elections, 1788–1790. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-06690-8.
- Web sites
-
- "The Electoral Count for the Presidential Election of 1789". The Papers of George Washington.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - "A Historical Analysis of the Electoral College". The Green Papers.
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- "The Electoral Count for the Presidential Election of 1789". The Papers of George Washington.