<P> John Adams Federalist </P> <P> The United States presidential election of 1796 was the third quadrennial presidential election . It was held from Friday, November 4 to Wednesday, December 7, 1796 . It was the first contested American presidential election and the only one in which a president and vice president were elected from opposing tickets . </P> <P> With incumbent President George Washington having refused a third term in office, incumbent Vice President John Adams from Massachusetts became a candidate for the presidency on the Federalist Party ticket with former Governor Thomas Pinckney of South Carolina as the next most popular Federalist . Their opponents were former Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson from Virginia along with Senator Aaron Burr of New York of the Democratic - Republicans . At this point, each man from any party ran alone, as the formal position of "running mate" had not yet been established . </P> <P> Unlike the 1792 election, where the outcome was a foregone conclusion, Democratic - Republicans campaigned heavily for Jefferson, and Federalists campaigned heavily for Adams . The campaign was an acrimonious one, with Federalists attempting to identify the Republicans with the violence of the French Revolution and the Democratic - Republicans accusing the Federalists of favoring monarchism and aristocracy . Republicans sought to identify Adams with the policies developed by fellow Federalist Alexander Hamilton during the Washington administration, which they declaimed were too much in favor of Great Britain and a centralized national government . Paradoxically, Hamilton himself opposed Adams and worked to undermine his election . In foreign policy, Republicans denounced the Federalists over Jay's Treaty . Federalists attacked Jefferson's moral character, alleging he was an atheist, and a coward during the War of Independence . Adams supporters also accused Jefferson of being too pro-France; the accusation was underscored when the French ambassador embarrassed the Republicans by publicly backing Jefferson and attacking the Federalists right before the election . </P>

Who was the federalist candidate for president in the election of 1796