George Clinton (vice president)

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This page is for the Vice President George Clinton. For others of that name see George Clinton.

George Clinton (July 26, 1739 – April 20, 1812) was an American soldier and politician. He served as the first Governor of New York from 1777 to 1795, as a member of the State Assembly in 1800 and 1801, and as the third Governor from 1801 to 1804. According to the National Governors Association, with 21 years of service, he is the longest-serving governor of a U.S. state.

He went on to serve as the fourth Vice President of the United States, first from 1805 to 1809 under Thomas Jefferson, and then from 1809 until his death under James Madison, becoming the first Vice President to die in office.

At 18 he enlisted in the British Army to fight in wars with France and India. He subsequently studied law, became clerk of the court of common pleas and served in the state assembly. He was elected to the Continental Congress and voted for the Declaration of Independence but was called to serve Washington as a brigadier general of militia and had to leave before the signing. He did not support the adoption of the Constitution until the Bill of Rights was added.

He was known for his hatred of Tories [1] and used seizure and sale of Tory estates to help keep taxes down. A supporter and friend of George Washington, he supplied food to the troops at Valley Forge, rode with Washington to the first Inauguration and gave an impressive dinner to celebrate it.

His father, Charles Clinton, was an Irish immigrant to Little Britain, New York and member of the New York colonial assembly who inspired his political interests. George Clinton was the brother of General James Clinton and the uncle of De Witt Clinton, who served as seventh and ninth Governor of New York.

Clinton County, New York and Clinton County, Ohio are named after him, and Washington, D.C. has erected a gilded equestrian sculpture of him on Connecticut Avenue. In 1873, the state of New York donated a bronze statue of Clinton to the U.S. Capitol's National Statuary Hall Collection.

His original burial was in Washington. He was reinterred in Kingston, New York in 1908.

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External links

Architect of the Capitol: George Clinton

Senior U.S. Governors-National Governors Association

Preceded by: (none)	Governor of New York 1777–1795	Succeeded by: John Jay
Preceded by: (none)	Republican Party vice presidential candidate 1792 (lost)^(a)	Succeeded by: Aaron Burr^(a)
Preceded by: John Jay	Governor of New York 1801–1804	Succeeded by: Morgan Lewis
Preceded by: Aaron Burr^(a)	Republican Party vice presidential candidate 1804 (won), 1808 (won)	Succeeded by: Elbridge Gerry
Preceded by: Aaron Burr	Vice President of the United States March 4, 1805–April 20, 1812	Succeeded by: Elbridge Gerry
^(a) Clinton was technically a presidential candidate in 1792 and Burr was technically a presidential candidate in 1796 and 1800. Prior to the passage of the Twelfth Amendment in 1804, each presidential elector would cast two ballots; the highest vote-getter would become President and the runner-up would become Vice President. Thus, in 1792, with George Washington as the prohibitive favorite for President, the Republican Party fielded Clinton with the intention that he be elected Vice President. Similarly, in both 1796 and 1800, the Republican Party fielded two candidates, Burr and Thomas Jefferson, with the intention that Jefferson be elected President and Burr be elected Vice President.