The Congressional delay in certifying George Washington’s election as president only allowed more time for doubts to fester as he considered the herculean task ahead. The excerpt below sheds light on the president’s state of mind as the first Inauguration Day approached. In a new biography, Washington: A Life, Ron Chernow has created a portrait of the man as his contemporaries saw him. The reason-bad roads-suggests the condition of the country Washington would lead. Congress was supposed to make the choice official that March but could not muster a quorum until April. On February 4, 1789, the 69 members of the Electoral College made George Washington the only chief executive to be unanimously elected. Editor’s note: Even as the Constitution was being ratified, Americans looked toward a figure of singular probity to fill the new office of the presidency.
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