Donald Trump will be sworn in as President of the United States on January 20, in a ceremony in Washington, DC But it wasn’t always like this.
For more than a century, these ceremonies have been held on March 4th. The date had been established by a resolution approved in September 1788 by the last Congress under the Articles of Confederation – considered the first US Constitution, prior to the current one.
The rule stated that voters would vote for president on the first Wednesday of February 1789, while the new Congress (and the government) would begin work on the first Wednesday of March of the same year – which became the 4th, according to the US National Archives.
This lasted until 1933, when, on January 23, the 20th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, changing the date of the ceremony to January 20.
As the new established date had already passed that year, Franklin D. Roosevelt took office on March 4, being the last to take office on that date.
He was also the first to take office on January 20, when he was re-elected. This happened in 1937.
First ceremony did not take place on March 4
An interesting fact is that the first US presidential inauguration ceremony — that of George Washington — only took place on April 30, 1789.
This is because the first months of that year had a lot of snow and mild temperatures, making it difficult to get around. Also, there were no cars or planes back then.
Thus, there were delays in travel to New York, the temporary seat of the government, and the necessary quorum in Congress to carry out the certification of the president was only obtained on April 6, according to the US National Archives.
There were also exceptions in 1821, 1849, 1877 and 1917, years in which March 4 fell on a Sunday. The inauguration ceremony was held the following day, March 5th.
This content was originally published in Presidential inauguration in the US was in March, but Congress changed the date; understand on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
