1788–89 United States presidential election in Maryland
January 7, 1789
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County results
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| Elections in Maryland |
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| Government |
A presidential election was held in Maryland on January 7, 1789, as part of the 1788–1789 United States presidential election to elect the first President. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president. However, two electors did not vote.
Early elections were quite different from modern ones. Voters voted for individual electors, who were pledged to vote for certain candidates. Often, which candidate an elector intended to support was unclear.[1] Prior to the ratification of the 12th amendment, each elector did not distinguish between a vote cast for president and Vice President and simply cast two votes.[2]
All electors were pledged to Washington, but there was a Federalist slate which supported Robert Hanson Harrison for vice president and an Anti-Federalist slate which supported George Clinton for vice president. Additionally, there were two electors supported by both parties. Maryland chose the Federalist electors over the Anti-Federalist electors by a large margin. The two highest electors John Rogers and George Plater, were supported by both parties, with both electors receiving 7,665 and 7573 total votes respectively. John Rogers voted for federalist Robert Hanson Harrison, while George Plater and one other elected candidate, William Richardson, did not cast a vote. Despite not casting a vote, George was still a federalist.[3] The highest Federalist elector, Alexander C. Hanson, received 5,596 votes. The highest Anti-Federalist elector, Jeremiah T. Chase, received 2,278 votes.[4][5]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | George Washington | 9,943 | 100.00% | |
| Total votes | 9,943 | 100.00% | ||
Results by county
| County | George Washington
Federalist |
George Washington
Anti-Federalist |
Margin | Total
votes[a] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Anne Arundel | 678 | 55.17% | 551 | 44.83% | 127 | 10.34% | 1,229 |
| Baltimore | 745 | 52.91% | 663 | 47.09% | 82 | 5.82% | 1,408 |
| Baltimore Town | 843 | 68.99% | 379 | 31.01% | 464 | 37.98% | 1,222 |
| Calvert | 258 | 72.27% | 99 | 27.73% | 159 | 44.54% | 357 |
| Caroline | 129 | 99.23% | 1 | 0.77% | 128 | 98.46% | 130 |
| Cecil | 519 | 100.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 519 | 100.00% | 519 |
| Charles | 190 | 92.68% | 15 | 7.32% | 175 | 85.36% | 205 |
| Dorchester | 114 | 62.64% | 68 | 37.36% | 46 | 25.28% | 182 |
| Frederick | 790 | 99.62% | 3 | 0.38% | 787 | 99.24% | 793 |
| Harford | 444 | 64.82% | 241 | 35.18% | 203 | 29.64% | 685 |
| Kent | 209 | 79.77% | 53 | 20.23% | 156 | 59.54% | 262 |
| Montgomery | 322 | 87.98% | 44 | 12.02% | 278 | 75.96% | 366 |
| Prince George's | 510 | 67.73% | 243 | 32.27% | 267 | 35.46% | 753 |
| Queen Anne's | 55 | 52.88% | 49 | 47.12% | 6 | 5.76% | 104 |
| St. Mary's | 116 | 74.84% | 39 | 25.16% | 77 | 49.68% | 155 |
| Somerset | 212 | 99.07% | 2 | 0.93% | 210 | 98.14% | 214 |
| Talbot | 254 | 100.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 254 | 100.00% | 254 |
| Washington | 1,164 | 100.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 1,164 | 100.00% | 1,164 |
| Worcester | 154 | 64.44% | 85 | 35.56% | 69 | 28.88% | 239 |
| Total | 7,706 | 75.25% | 2,535 | 24.75% | 5,171 | 50.50% | 10,241 |
Results by district
| District | George Washington
Federalist |
George Washington
Anti-Federalist |
Margin | Total
votes[a] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | Electors | # | % | Electors | # | % | ||
| 1 | 550 | 82.83% | 6 | 114 | 17.17% | 0 | 436 | 65.66% | 664 |
| 2 | 1,032 | 91.01% | 102 | 8.99% | 930 | 82.02% | 1,134 | ||
| 3 | 1,188 | 60.40% | 779 | 39.60% | 409 | 20.80% | 1,967 | ||
| 4 | 2,032 | 61.37% | 1,279 | 38.63% | 753 | 22.74% | 3,311 | ||
| 5 | 606 | 85.84% | 100 | 14.16% | 506 | 71.68% | 706 | ||
| 6 | 2,276 | 97.98% | 47 | 2.02% | 2,229 | 95.96% | 2,323 | ||
| Total | 7,684 | 76.04% | 6 | 2,421 | 23.96% | 0 | 5,263 | 52.08% | 10,105 |
Results by elector
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federalist | John Rogers | 7,665 | 12.51% | |
| Federalist | George Plater[b] | 7,573 | 12.36% | |
| Federalist | William Tilghman | 5,746 | 9.38% | |
| Federalist | Alexander C. Hanson | 5,596 | 9.14% | |
| Federalist | Philip Thomas | 5,456 | 8.91% | |
| Federalist | Robert Smith | 5,455 | 8.91% | |
| Federalist | William Richardson[b] | 5,402 | 8.82% | |
| Federalist | William Matthews | 5,291 | 8.64% | |
| Anti-Federalist | Jeremiah T. Chase | 2,278 | 3.72% | |
| Anti-Federalist | John Seney | 2,209 | 3.61% | |
| Anti-Federalist | Charles Ridgely | 2,199 | 3.59% | |
| Anti-Federalist | James Shaw | 2,130 | 3.48% | |
| Anti-Federalist | Henry Waggaman | 1,669 | 2.72% | |
| Anti-Federalist | Lawrence O'Neale | 1,241 | 2.03% | |
| Federalist | Thomas Johnson | 718 | 1.17% | |
| Federalist | John Done | 165 | 0.27% | |
| Anti-Federalist | Moses Rawlings | 157 | 0.26% | |
| Anti-Federalist | William Thomas, Jr. | 125 | 0.20% | |
| Anti-Federalist | William Paca | 83 | 0.14% | |
| Federalist | Nathaniel Ramsey | 70 | 0.11% | |
| Anti-Federalist | John A. Thomas | 19 | 0.03% | |
| Federalist | George Dent | 1 | 0.00% | |
| Total votes | 61,248 | 100.00% | ||
See also
- United States presidential elections in Maryland
- 1788–89 United States presidential election
- 1788–89 United States elections
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "A New Nation Votes". elections.lib.tufts.edu. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
- ^ "Electoral College & Indecisive Elections | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives". history.house.gov. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
- ^ "Maryland State Archives". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved March 3, 2026.
- ^ "A New Nation Votes". elections.lib.tufts.edu. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
- ^ a b "County Project (WIP)". Google Docs. Retrieved December 22, 2021.