The Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides the procedure for electing the president and vice president. It replaced the procedure in Article II, Section 1, Clause 3, under which the Electoral College originally functioned. The amendment was proposed by Congress on December 9, 1803, and was ratified by the requisite three-fourths of state legislatures on June 15, 1804. The new rules took effect for the 1804 presidential election and have governed all subsequent presidential elections.
Presidential elections were first held in the United States from December 15, 1788 to January 7, 1789, under the new Constitution ratified in 1788. George Washington was unanimously elected for the first of his two terms as president and John Adams became the first vice president. This was the only U.S. presidential election that spanned two calendar years without a contingent election and the first national presidential election in American history.
The 1792 presidential election were held in the United States from November 2 to December 5, 1792. Incumbent President George Washington was elected to a second term by a unanimous vote in the electoral college, while John Adams was reelected as vice president. Washington was essentially unopposed, but Adams faced a competitive re-election against Governor George Clinton of New York.
Presidential elections were held in the United States from November 4 to December 7, 1796, when electors throughout the United States cast their ballots. It was the first contested American presidential election, the first presidential election in which political parties played a dominant role, and the only presidential election in which a president and vice president were elected from opposing tickets. Incumbent vice president John Adams of the Federalist Party defeated former secretary of state Thomas Jefferson of the Democratic-Republican Party.
Presidential elections were held in the United States from October 31 to December 3, 1800. In what is sometimes called the "Revolution of 1800", the Democratic-Republican Party candidate, Vice President Thomas Jefferson, defeated the Federalist Party candidate and incumbent, President John Adams. The election was a political realignment that ushered in a generation of Democratic-Republican leadership. This was the first presidential election in American history to be a rematch. It was also the first election in American history where an incumbent president did not win re-election.
In the United States, the Electoral College is the group of presidential electors that is formed every four years during the presidential election for the sole purpose of voting for the president and vice president. The process is described in Article Two of the Constitution. The number of electoral votes exercised by each state is equal to that state's congressional delegation which is the number of Senators (two) plus the number of Representatives for that state. Each state appoints electors using legal procedures determined by its legislature. Federal office holders, including senators and representatives, cannot be electors. Additionally, the Twenty-third Amendment granted the federal District of Columbia three electors. A simple majority of electoral votes is required to elect the president and vice president. If no candidate achieves a majority, a contingent election is held by the House of Representatives, to elect the president, and by the Senate, to elect the vice president.
The election of the president and for vice president of the United States is an indirect election in which citizens of the United States who are registered to vote in one of the fifty U.S. states or in Washington, D.C., cast ballots not directly for those offices, but instead for members of the Electoral College. These electors then cast direct votes, known as electoral votes, for president and for vice president. The candidate who receives an absolute majority of electoral votes is then elected to that office. If no candidate receives an absolute majority of the votes for president, the House of Representatives elects the president; likewise if no one receives an absolute majority of the votes for vice president, then the Senate elects the vice president.
The 1800 United States presidential election in Vermont took place between October 31 and December 3, 1800, as part of the 1800 United States presidential election. The state legislature chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.
The 1800 United States presidential election in Connecticut took place between October 31 and December 3, 1800, as part of the 1800 United States presidential election. The state legislature chose nine representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.
In the 1800 United States presidential election, electors could be selected in each state at any time after October 31 and all electors were required to vote on December 3, 1800. In the 1800 United States presidential election in South Carolina, the state legislature chose 8 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College on December 2, 1800. Based on the constitutional provision in effect at that time, electors cast two votes. The candidate receiving most votes would be President. The runner up would be elected Vice President.
Electoral history of John Adams, who had served as the second president of the United States (1797–1801) and the first vice president of the United States (1789–1797). Prior to being president, he had diplomatic experience as the second United States envoy to France (1777–1779), the first United States minister to the Netherlands (1782–1788), and the first United States minister to the United Kingdom (1785–1788). After losing the 1800 presidential election to Thomas Jefferson, he would mostly retire from political life, with his second youngest son, John Quincy Adams (1767–1848), being elected as the sixth president of the United States (1825–1829) in the 1824 presidential election against Senator Andrew Jackson of Tennessee.
The 1800 United States presidential election in Delaware took place between 31 October and 3 December 1800, as part of the 1800 United States presidential election. Voters chose three representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.
The 1812 United States presidential election in Georgia took place between 30 October and 2 December 1812, as part of the 1812 United States presidential election. The state legislature chose eight representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President. Georgia had gained two additional electors compared to the previous election in 1808.
The 1796 United States presidential election in Georgia took place on 4 November 1796, as part of the 1796 United States presidential election. The voters chose four representatives, or electors, through plurality block voting to the Electoral College. These electors then voted for President and vice president.
The 1792 United States presidential election in Georgia took place between 2 November and 5 December 1792, as part of the 1792 United States presidential election. The state legislature chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President. Georgia had lost one elector compared to the previous election in 1788-89.
The 1804 United States presidential election in Kentucky took place between 2 November and 15 December 1804, as part of the 1804 United States presidential election. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President. Kentucky had gained four electors compared to the previous election in 1800.
The 1800 United States presidential election in Kentucky took place between 31 October and 3 December 1800, as part of the 1800 United States presidential election. Voters chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for President and Vice President.
