What year did the US electoral college begin?

Answer 1

Our founding fathers were all about compromise when they were choosing a mechanism for picking the president. One early idea was to have the Congress or the Senate decide, but that plan was nixed because it was felt that arrangement would have upset the government's balance of power and fostered corruption. The founders feared a direct, winner-take-all election would be too reckless. Since travel and communication around the country was slow, they worried that citizens wouldn't get sufficient information about candidates outside their state and would usually just pick someone from their region. With a direct popular vote, it is more likely that no candidate would receive a majority sufficient to govern a whole country, making challenges more frequent. Even if there was a clear winner, the selection of the president would often be decided by the biggest, most populous state with little attention paid to smaller ones. The Electoral College seemed like a better way to ensure the president had a wide geographic mandate.

Answer 2

The first U.S. presidential election was in 1789. George Washington was elected as the first President of the United States. The election was conducted under the new United States Constitution, which had been ratified earlier in 1788. In the election, George Washington received all 69 electoral votes and was unanimously elected president.

Answer 3

The first U.S. presidential election was in 1789. George Washington was elected as the first president of the United States. The election was conducted under the new United States Constitution, which had been ratified earlier in 1788. In the election, George Washington received all 69 electoral votes and was unanimously elected president.

Answer 4

The U.S. electoral college was created by the United States Constitution in 1788. The first U.S. presidential election was in 1789. George Washington was elected as the first president of the United States. The election was conducted under the new United States Constitution, which had been ratified earlier in 1788. In the election, George Washington received all 69 electoral votes and was unanimously elected president. John Adams was elected vice-president.

Answer 5

The Electoral College system was established in Article II of the Constitution and amended by the 12th Amendment in 1804.

Answer 6

1780

Answer 7

1789