When was the first presidential election in the US? 

The election process in the world’s most powerful nation, the US, has come a long way. Various amendments have been made to the Constitution that allowed black men, white women and other disadvantaged groups to participate in the elections. Further amendments during the 60s and 70s allowed citizen above 18 years of age to cast their votes, along with other major developments. In this article, we will be discussing the first presidential election in the US.

The first presidential election in the US

The first presidential elections in the United States were held in 1789 when George Washington was declared the nation’s first president with 69 electoral votes. According to some journals, being a national hero and the favourite son of Virginia, George Washington was seen as the best choice for the Presidential Office. He was regarded as a national hero because he had earlier served as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution and president of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.

The electors for the first presidential election were chosen between the time period of December 15, 1788, and January 10, 1789. These electors, even now, play the most important role in the presidential election, as they are the ones who actually vote for their preferred candidates. As per Article ii of the American Constitution, the candidate who secures the majority of the electoral votes ends up being elected as the president of the nation.

Significance of electoral votes

As mentioned above, in the first presidential elections, George Washington won the confidence of each participating electoral voter and secured 69 electoral votes. Washington remains the first and last President in history to win the office with such a huge margin. We are in the 21^st century, and many things witnessed a drastic change, as did the election process. If you are wondering how many electoral votes are there in the USA? currently, the Electoral College comprises 538 electors. 

In the present times, a candidate requires a majority of 270 votes to win the Presidential Office. In case of a rare occurrence of a tie, the voting gets transferred to the House of Representatives, then conducts an election, where the members vote for their preferred candidate. 

Conclusion

The above article was surely a deep dive into the history of American elections. We hope that our readers were able to understand the dynamics and history of elections in a better manner.

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