With American citizens heading to polling stations today to vote for either Kamala Harris or Donald Trump in the 47th US presidential race, some of us are asking, just how does it all work.
The United States presidential elections are a complex process and involves several key steps:
- Primaries and Caucuses: Before the general election, political parties hold primaries and caucuses in each state to choose their nominee. Primaries are statewide voting processes, while caucuses are local gatherings where voters openly show support for candidates.
- National Conventions: Once primaries and caucuses conclude, each political party holds a national convention. Here, delegates officially nominate the party’s candidate for president and vice president. The conventions also serve as a platform to present the party’s platform and policies.
- General Election Campaign: After the conventions, the nominated candidates campaign across the country to win support from voters. Debates, rallies, and advertisements play a significant role in swaying public opinion.
- Election Day: The general election is held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Voters cast their ballots for a slate of members of the Electoral College, known as electors.
- Electoral College: The United States uses an Electoral College system to elect the president. Each state has a certain number of electoral votes based on its representation in Congress (the total of its senators and representatives). Most states use a winner-takes-all approach, where the candidate with the majority of the popular vote receives all the state’s electoral votes.
- Electoral Vote Count: In December, the electors meet in their respective states to cast their votes for president and vice president. These votes are then sent to Congress.
- Congressional Certification: In early January, a joint session of Congress convenes to count the electoral votes and officially certify the election results.
- Inauguration: The newly elected president and vice president are inaugurated on January 20th, marking the beginning of their four-year term.
The candidate who receives a majority of the electoral votes (at least 270 out of 538) wins the presidency. If no candidate reaches this majority, the House of Representatives elects the president, with each state delegation having one vote, while the Senate elects the vice president.
