When was the first US election held? What was the result?

US Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump are set to battle it out to become the 47th president of the United States.

But what do you know about the first US election?

When was it held? And who were the candidates?

Let’s take a closer look:

What happened?

The first US election was held in 1789.

It occurred one year after the ratification of the US Constitution in 1788.

The Election Ordinance passed by Congress on September 13, 1788, mandated that states pick their presidential Electors on January 7, 1789.

Congress set February 4, 1789, as the date ballots for president would be cast.

However, not all states participated in the presidential election.

North Carolina and Rhode Island, for example, had not ratified the US Constitution yet.

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New York, meanwhile, did not pass an election Act due to an internal dispute and missed the 7 January deadline of choosing its electors.

In the end, just 69 electors from 10 states – Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia – cast their ballots on 4 February, 1789.

George Washington, John Adams, John Hancock, John Milton and George Clinton were some of the candidates.

The formula for selecting the president was simple.

Every elector was given two votes – one for president and one for vice president.

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The man who received the most votes would be president, while the one who received the second most votes would be vice-president.

The results were then sent to Congress where they would be tabulated before the US Senators and Representatives.

Though the results would not be known yet, Washington, already a national icon as a result of serving as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, was a shoo-in.

This despite the fact that he did not put his candidacy forth for the president, did no campaigning for the job and gave no speeches.

Washington even expressed doubt that he would take up the position if chosen by his countrymen.

He was at his beloved estate of Mount Vernon as the electors gathered to vote.

What was the result?

On March 4, 1789, Congress did not have a sufficient quorum to conduct the people’s business.

Congress later reconvened on April 6, 1789, to count the ballots.

The result was unsurprising.

Washington, with 69 votes, was unanimously chosen as the First President of the United States.

Adams, arguably the finest diplomat of his day, came in second with 34 votes and thus became vice-president.

Washington, being informed of his elevation to the highest office in the land by the Secretary of Congress, issued the following statement, “I have been long accustomed to entertain so great a respect for the opinion of my fellow-citizens, that the knowledge of their unanimous suffrages having been given in my favour, scarcely leaves me… an option. Whatever may have been my private feelings and sentiments, I believe I cannot give a greater evidence of my sensibility for the honour they have done me, than by accepting the appointment… All I can promise is, only that which can be accomplished by an honest zeal.”

Washington was inaugurated at Federal Hall in New York City on April 30, 1789.

He took the oath of office on a Bible borrowed from a local Masonic lodge.

Washington thus became the first chief executive of the country.

He would go on to serve a second term – to which he was again elected unanimously.

Adams, meanwhile, would yet again serve as vice president.

Washington could have had a third term if he willed it.

Instead, he set an example for his fellow politicians and countrymen and walked away from the highest office.

With inputs from agencies