Final answer:
Washington worried that political parties would destabilize national unity and result in factional dominance. His Farewell Address warned of the perils of partisanship. Nevertheless, divergent views on policies led to the development of the Federalist and Republican parties, culminating in the nation's first partisan election.
Step-by-step explanation:
George Washington was apprehensive about the formation of political parties, fearing that they would lead to partisan rancor and threaten national unity. In his Farewell Address, he cautioned that parties might lead to the "alternate domination of one faction over another," which could result in a cycle of revenge and potentially dire consequences for the country. Despite his efforts to avoid such divisions, by the end of his first term, domestic and foreign policy issues had split political leaders into the Federalists, who favored a strong central government, and the Republicans, who advocated for limited central authority. The emergence of partisan politics was a response to these diverging viewpoints, and the first partisan presidential election occurred in 1796.