George Washington is unanimously elected first U.S. president
On this day · 4 February 1789
On February 4, 1789, all 69 electors handed Washington the only unanimous victory in American presidential history.
When the first Electoral College met on February 4, 1789, there was no real suspense. Every one of the 69 electors present cast a vote for George Washington, making him the only person ever elected president of the United States by unanimous acclaim. John Adams, the runner-up with 34 votes, became the first vice president.
Only ten of the thirteen states took part. North Carolina and Rhode Island had not yet ratified the Constitution, and New York’s legislature deadlocked and failed to appoint electors in time.
The man everyone wanted for the job was the one man reluctant to take it.
The votes were not formally counted by Congress until April 6, and Washington took the oath at Federal Hall in New York City on April 30, 1789. He accepted the office out of duty rather than ambition, setting precedents, from the cabinet to the two-term tradition, that still shape the presidency more than two centuries later.
Sources & references
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