1788–89 Presidential Election
December 15, 1788 – January 7, 1789 · The Founding Era · 138 electoral votes, 70 to win
Washington was elected unanimously, the only president chosen without opposition, with Adams becoming vice president under the original two-votes-per-elector system. New York, North Carolina and Rhode Island cast no electoral votes, their ratification politics unresolved.
Elected
George Washington
Independent
Electoral vote
69 of 138
Popular vote
100.0%
43,782 votes
Turnout
11.6%
The result
| EV share | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Washington | Independent | — | 69 | 43,782 | 100.00% | 10 | |
| John Adams | Federalist | — | 34 | — | — | — | |
| John Jay | Federalist | — | 9 | — | — | — | |
| Robert H. Harrison | Federalist | — | 6 | — | — | — | |
| John Rutledge | Federalist | — | 6 | — | — | — | |
| John Hancock | Federalist | — | 4 | — | — | — | |
| George Clinton | Anti-Administration | — | 3 | — | — | — | |
| Samuel Huntington | Federalist | — | 2 | — | — | — | |
| John Milton | Federalist | — | 2 | — | — | — | |
| James Armstrong | Federalist | — | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Benjamin Lincoln | Federalist | — | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Edward Telfair | Federalist | — | 1 | — | — | — |
Before 1824 most electors were chosen by state legislatures, so popular-vote figures cover only a handful of states, and until the 12th Amendment each elector cast two votes, with the runner-up becoming vice president.
Results by state
| Connecticut | George Washington | — | 7 | — |
| Delaware | George Washington | — | 3 | — |
| Georgia | George Washington | — | 5 | — |
| Maryland | George Washington | — | 6 | — |
| Massachusetts | George Washington | — | 10 | — |
| New Hampshire | George Washington | — | 5 | — |
| New Jersey | George Washington | — | 6 | — |
| New York | George Washington | — | — | — |
| North Carolina | George Washington | — | — | — |
| Pennsylvania | George Washington | — | 10 | — |
| Rhode Island | George Washington | — | — | — |
| South Carolina | George Washington | — | 7 | — |
| Virginia | George Washington | — | 10 | — |
States marked without popular votes chose their electors in the legislature.
The Congress it seated
1th Congress
1789–1791
Unified government
Senate
8–18
Anti-Administration vs Pro-Administration
House
28–37
Anti-Administration vs Pro-Administration