COUNTING ELECTORAL VOTES. PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES IN CONGRESS. ELECTION FOR FIRST TERM, 1789. GEORGE WASHINGTON, President. IN THE SENATE, April 6, 1789. The credentials of the members present being read and ordered to be filed, the Senate proceeded, by ballot, to the choice of a President for the sole purpose of opening and counting the votes for President of the United States. JOHN LANGDON was elected. Ordered, That Mr. Ellsworth inform the House of Representatives that a quorum of the Senate is formed; that a president is elected for the sole purpose of opening the certificates and counting the votes of the electors of the several States in the choice of a President and Vice-President of the United States; and that the Senate is now ready, in the Senate Chamber, to proceed in the presence of the House to discharge that duty; and that the Senate have appointed one of their members to sit at the Clerk's table to make a list of the votes as they shall be declared; submitting it to the wisdom of the House to appoint one or more of their members for the like purpose. Mr. Ellsworth reported that he had delivered the message; and Mr. Boudinot, from the House of Representatives, appeared and delivered the following message: Mr. PRESIDENT: I am directed by the House of Representatives to inform the Senate that the House is ready forthwith to meet the Senate to attend the opening and counting of the votes of the electors of the President and Vice-President of the United States. Ordered, That Mr. Paterson be a teller on the part of the Senate. The Speaker and the House of Representatives attended in the Senate Chamber, and the president elected for the purpose of counting the votes declared the Senate and House of Representatives had met, and that he, in their presence, had opened and counted the votes of the electors for President and Vice-President of the United which were as follows: States, Whereby it appeared that GEORGE WASHINGTON, esq., was elected President, and JOHN ADAMS, esq., Vice-President of the United States of America. Mr. MADISON came from the House of Representatives with the following verba message: Mr. PRESIDENT: I am directed by the House of Representatives to inform the Senate that the House have agreed that the notifications of the election of the President and of the Vice-President of the United States should be made by such persons, and in such manner, as the Senate shall be pleased to direct. Whereupon the Senate appointed Charles Thomson, esq., to notify GEORGE WASHINGTON, esq., of his election to the office of President of the United States of America, and Mr. Sylvanus Bourn to notify JOHN ADAMS, esq., of his election to the office of Vice-President of the said United States. Ordered, That Mr. Paterson, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lee, and Mr. Ellsworth be a committee to prepare the certificates of the election of the President and of the Vice-President of the United States, and to prepare letters to GEORGE WASHINGTON, esq., and to JOHN ADAMS, esq., to accompany the said certificates respectively. Form of the certificate for the President. "Be it known, that the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, being convened in the city and State of New York, the sixth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine, the underwritten, appointed President of the Senate for the sole purpose of receiving, opening, and counting the votes of the electors, did, in the presence of the said Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and count all the votes of the electors for a President and for a Vice-President; by which it appears that George Washington, esquire, was unanimously elected, agreeably to the Constitution, to the office of President of the United States of America. "In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal. "JOHN LANGDON." A similar certificate, substituting the word "Vice-President" for that of "President," and the word "duly" for "unanimously," was prepared for Mr. Adams. These certificates, accompanied by appropriate letters from Mr. Langdon, President of the Senate, were dispatched, by special messengers appointed by the Senate for that purpose, to General Washington and Mr. Adams. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, April 6, 1789. A message from the Senate by Mr. Ellsworth: Mr. SPEAKER: I am charged by the Senate to inform this House that a quorum of the Senate is now formed; that a President is elected for the sole purpose of opening the certificates and counting the votes of the electors of the several States in the choice of a President and Vice-President of the United States; and that the Senate is now ready in the Senate Chamber, to proceed in the presence of this House to discharge that duty. I have it also in further charge to inform this House that the Senate has appointed one of its members to sit at the Clerk's table to make a list of the votes as they shall be declared, submitting it to the wisdom of this House to appoint one or more of its members for the like purpose. On motion, Resolved, That Mr. Speaker, attended by the House, do now withdraw to the Senate Chamber, for the purpose expressed in the message from the Senate, and that Mr. Parker and Mr. Heister be appointed, on the part of this House, to sit at the Clerk's table with the member of the Senate, and make a list of the votes as the same shall be declared. Mr. Speaker accordingly left the chair, and, attended by the House, withdrew to the Senate Chamber, and after some time returned to the House. Mr. Speaker resumed the chair. Mr. Parker and Mr. Heister then delivered in at the Clerk's table a list of the votes of the electors of the several States in the choice of a President and Vice-President of the United States, as the same were declared by the President of the Senate in the presence of the Senate and of this House; which was ordered to be entered on the Journal, and is as followeth : [Here follows the table, which is an exact copy of the one appearing in the Senate proceedings, except there is a recapitulation of the votes.] Ordered, That a message be sent to the Senate to inform them that it is the desire of this House that the notifications of the election of the President and Vice-President of the United States should be made by such persons and in such manner as the Senate shall be pleased to direct, and that Mr. Madison do communicate the said message. LAW REGULATING THE ELECTION OF PRESIDENT AND VICE-PRESIDENT. [The following act was passed March 1, 1792, to perfect the manner of appointing electors. Only so much of the act as relates to electors is published:] AN ACT relative to the election of a President and Vice-President of the United States and declaring the officer who shall act as President in case of vacancies in the offices both of President and Vice-President. Be it enacted, &c., That except in case of an election of a President and Vice-President of the United States prior to the ordinary period, as hereinafter specified, electors shall be appointed in each State for the election of a President and Vice-President of the United States within thirty-four days preceding the first Wednesday in December, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-two, and within thirty-four days preceding the first Wednesday in December in every fourth year succeeding the last election; which electors shall be equal to the number of Senators and Representatives to which the several States may by law be entitled at the time when the President and Vice-President thus to be chosen should come into office: Provided always, That where no apportionment of Representatives shall have been made after any enumeration, at the time of choosing electors, then the number of electors shall be according to the existing apportionment of Senators and Representatives. SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the electors shall meet and give their votes on the said first Wednesday in December, at such place in each State as shall be directed by the Legislature thereof; and the electors in each State shall make and sign three certificates of all the votes by them given, and shall seal up the same, certifying on each that a list of the votes of such State for President and Vice-President is contained therein, and shall by writing under their hands, or under the hands of a majority of them, appoint a person to take charge of and deliver to the President of the Senate, at the seat of Government, before the first Wednesday in January then next ensuing, one of the said certificates; and the said electors shall forthwith forward, by the post-office, to the President of the Senate, at the seat of Government, one other of the said certificates; and shall forthwith cause the other of the said certificates to be delivered to the judge of that district in which the said electors shall assemble. SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the executive authority of each State shall cause three lists of the names of the electors of such State to be made and certified and to be delivered to the electors on or before the said first Wednesday in December; and the said electors shall annex one of the said lists to each of the lists of their votes. SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That if a list of votes from any State shall not have been received at the seat of Government on the said first Wednesday in January, that then the Secretary of State shall send a special messenger to the district judge in whose custody such list shall have been lodged, who shall forthwith transmit the same to the seat of Government. SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That Congress shall be in session on the second Wednesday in February, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-three, and on the second Wednesday in February succeeding every meeting of the electors, and the said certificates, or so many of them as shall have been received, shall then be opened, the votes counted, and the persons who shall fill the offices of President and Vice-President ascertained and declared agreeably to the Constitution. SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That, in case there shall be no President of the Senate at the seat of Government on the arrival of the persons intrusted with the lists of the votes of the electors, then such persons shall deliver the lists of votes in their custody into the office of the Secretary of State, to be safely kept and delivered over as soon as may be to the President of the Senate. SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That the persons appointed by the electors to deliver the lists of votes to the President of the Senate shall be allowed, on the delivery of the said lists, twenty-five cents for every mile of the estimated distance, by the most usual road, from the place of meeting of the electors to the seat of Government of the United States. SEC. 8. And be it further enacted, That if any person appointed to deliver the votes of the electors to the President of the Senate shall, after accepting of his appointment, neglect to perform the services required of him by this act, he shall forfeit the sum of one thousand dollars. ELECTION FOR SECOND TERM-1793. GEORGE WASHINGTON, President. IN SENATE, February 5, 1793. A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. Beckley, their Clerk: Mr. PRESIDENT: The House of Representatives have resolved that a committee be appointed, to join such committee as may be appointed by the Senate, to ascertain and report a mode of examining the votes for President and Vice-President, and of notifying the persons who shall be elected of their election; and for regulating the time, place, and manner of administering the oath of office to the President, and have appointed a committee on their part. February 6, 1793. The Senate proceeded to the consideration of the said resolution and concurred therein; and appointed Messrs. Izard, King, and Strong the committee on the part of the Senate. February 11, 1793. Mr. King, from the joint committee, reported— That the two Houses shall assemble in the Senate Chamber on Wednesday next, at twelve o'clock; that one person shall be appointed a teller, on the part of the Senate, to make a list of the votes as they shall be declared; that the result shall be delivered to the President of the Senate, who shall announce the state of the vote, and the persons elected, to the two Houses assembled as aforesaid; which shall be deemed a declaration of the persons elected President and Vice-President, and, together with a list of the votes, be entered on the Journals of the two Houses. And the report was agreed to. February 12, 1793. Ordered, That Mr. King be appointed on the part of the Senate a teller of the votes for President and Vice-President of the United States, conformable to the report of the joint committee agreed to on the 11th instant, and that the Secretary notify the House of Representatives of his appointment. February 13, 1793. Ordered, That the Secretary notify the House of Representatives that the Senate are ready to meet them in the Senate Chamber to attend the opening and counting the votes for President and Vice-President of the United States, as the Constitution provides. The two Houses having accordingly assembled, the certificates of the electors of the fifteen States in the Union, which came by express, were, by the Vice-President, opened, read, and delivered to the tellers appointed for the purpose, who, having examined and ascertained the votes, presented a list of them to the Vice-President, read to the two Houses, and is as follows: which list was |