George Washington
On January 7, 1789, Washington was elected president without any competition, making him the first President of the United States. John Adams (1735-1826), who received the second-largest number of votes, became the nation’s first vice president. The 57-year-old Washington was inaugurated on April 30, 1789, in New York City. Because Washington, D.C., America’s future capital city wasn’t yet built, he lived in New York and Philadelphia. While Washington did not belong to any political party, he agreed with certain Federalist Party policies, such as the country should have a standing army and a national bank.  While in office, he signed a bill establishing a future, permanent U.S. capital along the Potomac River—the city later named Washington, D.C., in his honor. He was re-elected to a second term.  After his second term, Washington decided not to run for re-election, despite his popularity remaining high.  His decision, to stop at 2 terms, set a precedent that every president followed until Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940.