When we talk about the first presidency, we mostly picture the stoic face on the dollar bill. But sitting right behind him was a guy who was basically miserable. It’s funny how we overlook the George Washington vice president dynamic, because it set the stage for every single power struggle in D.C. for the next two centuries. John Adams, the man who actually held the job, famously called the vice presidency "the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived." He wasn't exaggerating.
History is messy.
You have to understand that in 1789, nobody really knew what a Vice President was supposed to do. The Constitution was incredibly vague. It basically said: you sit there, you preside over the Senate, and you wait for the President to die. That’s it. For a guy like Adams, who had a brain that never stopped moving and an ego that needed constant feeding, being the George Washington vice president was a special kind of purgatory. He was the "second man" in a room where only one person's opinion mattered.
The Weird Election of 1789
The way Adams became the George Washington vice president was weird by today's standards. Back then, there weren't separate ballots for President and VP. Every elector just cast two votes. The winner became the big boss, and the runner-up got the consolation prize.
Washington was the unanimous choice. Everyone knew it.
Adams, however, only got 34 votes. He felt insulted. He was a revolutionary heavyweight, the "Atlas of Independence," and here he was, barely scraping by to get the second-place spot. This created an immediate tension. Washington was the silent, tall, dignified Virginian. Adams was the short, talkative, grumpy New Englander. They weren't exactly best friends. Washington rarely consulted Adams on policy. He didn't invite him to cabinet meetings. He basically treated him like a legislative officer rather than an executive partner.
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What Did the George Washington Vice President Actually Do?
Adams spent most of his time in the Senate. He took the "President of the Senate" title very seriously. Maybe too seriously. He constantly lectured the senators on etiquette and how they should address the President. He wanted titles like "His Highness" or "His Elective Majesty." The Senators, many of whom were rugged anti-monarchists, laughed at him behind his back. They nicknamed him "His Rotundity."
It was a rough start.
Despite the mockery, the George Washington vice president played a massive role in the actual mechanics of the government. Because the Senate was tiny—only 20 to 28 members depending on which states had joined—ties were incredibly common. Adams cast at least 31 tie-breaking votes during his eight years. That’s more than almost any other VP in history. He protected Washington’s neutrality policy. He helped push through the Jay Treaty. He was the "tie-breaker in chief," and honestly, without his votes, the early Federalist agenda probably would have collapsed under the weight of Thomas Jefferson’s growing opposition.
The Exclusion from the Inner Circle
If you think the "VP as a spare tire" trope is new, look at 1790. Washington fell dangerously ill with an anthrax infection in his leg. The whole country panicked. If Washington died, Adams was up. Yet, even during this crisis, there was no formal "handover" plan. Washington’s cabinet—guys like Alexander Hamilton and Henry Knox—didn't really look to Adams for leadership. They looked to Hamilton.
Adams was isolated.
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He stayed at his home in Braintree, Massachusetts, for months at a time. He hated Philadelphia. He hated the heat. He hated the politics. Most of all, he hated being ignored. Being the George Washington vice president meant watching Hamilton whisper in the President's ear while you were stuck listening to senators argue about land taxes. It’s a dynamic that defined the early American government: the executive branch was being built by Washington and Hamilton, while the Vice President was relegated to a decorative role in the legislature.
Realities of the Federalist Split
By Washington's second term, the government was splitting into two camps. You had the Federalists (Washington/Adams/Hamilton) and the Democratic-Republicans (Jefferson/Madison). Even though Adams was the George Washington vice president, he wasn't always in lockstep with the Federalist "High" faction led by Hamilton. He was a man of his own mind.
This created a three-way friction.
- Washington wanted to stay above the fray.
- Hamilton wanted to run the country from the Treasury.
- Adams wanted to be respected as the heir apparent.
Jefferson eventually resigned as Secretary of State in 1793, which made Adams's position even more awkward. Now, the leader of the opposition was a private citizen, and Adams was still stuck in the Senate, casting tie-breakers to keep the government from paralyzing itself. It was exhausting work for a job that everyone told him didn't matter.
Why the George Washington Vice President Matters Today
We often forget that the precedent for the peaceful transfer of power started here. When Washington decided to step down in 1796, it was Adams who had to prove the system worked. He had served his eight years of "insignificance." He had taken the hits, endured the nicknames, and stayed loyal to the office if not always the man.
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The George Washington vice president experience taught the Founding Fathers that the "runner-up" system was a disaster. It led to the 12th Amendment later on, because having two political rivals (like Adams and Jefferson in the next term) forced to work together was a recipe for a total government shutdown.
Adams's tenure proves that the VP's power isn't in the Constitution—it's in the relationship with the President. Because Washington didn't feel the need to delegate, Adams was sidelined. It took almost 150 years for the Vice President to regularly attend cabinet meetings. Adams was the guinea pig for an experiment that almost failed.
Actionable Insights for History Buffs and Researchers
If you're digging into the early Republic, don't just look at the biographies of Washington. To understand the friction of the 1790s, you need to look at the primary sources from the "forgotten" office.
- Read the Adams-Abigail Letters: These are gold. John complained to his wife about everything. You get the raw, unfiltered frustration of a man who felt his talents were being wasted. It's the best window into what the George Washington vice president actually felt.
- Analyze Senate Tie-Breakers: Look at the journals of the Senate from the 1st through 4th Congresses. You'll see exactly how Adams used his limited power to protect the executive branch's authority.
- Visit Peacefield: If you're ever in Quincy, Massachusetts, go to the Adams National Historical Park. You can see the library where he retreated to study political philosophy because he had nothing else to do as VP.
- Compare the "Succession" Crisis: Contrast Washington’s 1790 illness with later presidential transitions. It highlights how lucky the U.S. was that Washington survived his first term, given how little Adams was integrated into the daily operations of the executive branch.
The Vice Presidency has changed, but the "Adams problem"—being a heartbeat away from the most powerful job in the world while having no actual power—remains the core paradox of the office. Adams survived it, but he didn't enjoy a single second of it.