When Do We Elect the President of

the United States?

The people of the United States of

American choose a President every
four years. An election takes place
on the first Tuesday of November.
 Who Can Run For President?

To be the President you must:

1. Be born in the United States
2. Be at 35 years old
3. Lived in the U.S. for 14 years or more
The President can be
a man or woman
of any race or any religion.
 How Long Can You Be
President?

 You can be President for eight years

(that’s two four-year terms)

Trivia: Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the

only person to be President for more than
two terms. He was elected four times.
 How do we Elect a
President?
1. Candidates announce that they are entering the
race. This usually happens 1-2 years before the
November election.
2. Members in the same party run against each
other, trying to become the party’s candidate
during the primaries and caucuses.
3. At the National party convention the party
selects a candidate, the candidate selects a
“running mate” for vice president
4. The party writes a “platform” of goals and
promises.
 National Convention

Democratic National Convention

Obama’s DNC Acceptanc
e Speech

Republican National Convention

 How do Presidential
Candidates Campaign?
The Presidential candidates run
against each other try to get people
to vote for them by:
1. Giving speeches
2. Shaking hands
3. Giving interviews
4. Paying for ads on TV, radio, and in
the newspaper
 Who Can Vote for President?

To be qualified to vote one must be:

1. A United States citizen
2. 18 years of older
3. A resident of a state of the District
of Columbia.
4. Registered to vote
 Who Can not Vote?
You can not vote if you are:
1. In jail or on probation for
committing a felony
2. A convicted felon
3. Legally insane
 When do you Vote?

On the first Tuesday of November,

people all over the United States go
to polling locations and vote their
choice for President.
 How do you Vote?

Some people vote by:

1. Punching a hole in a card
2. Touching a computer screen
3. Putting an X on a paper ballot
next to the candidate name.
 Who is running for President in 2016?

 Democrats:
 Hillary Clinton. Martin O'Malley. Bernie Sanders

 Republicans:
 Jeb Bush. Ben Carson. Chris Christie. Ted Cruz. Carly Fiorina.
Jim Gilmore. Lindsey Graham. Mike Huckabee. John Kasich.
George Pataki. Rand Paul. Marco Rubio. Rick Santorum. Donald
Trump.

 Independents:
Jill Stein
 What do YOU Think??
In the 2000 presidential election, Al
Gore, the Democratic candidate,
defeated George Bush, the Republican
Candidate, in the popular vote (Gore-
50,999,897 votes-48.4% to Bush-
50,456,002-47.9%) However, George
Bush became President of the United
States. Why?
 “How does voting work?”
The Electoral College
 The Framers of the Constitution set up the
Electoral College to choose a President
 The Framers did not want the President to
be elected through Congress or through a
le direct vote of the people
l
r al Co d  If chosen by Congress the President
lecto plaine
E Ex would be “too much under the legislative
ge
…. thumb” - Alexander Hamilton
 If chosen by the people there would be
disorganization & the American people
were seen as unable to make a wise and
informed choice.
 “How does voting work?”
The Electoral College
 Hamilton’s plan was chosen:
 The President and Vice President were to be
chosen by a special body of presidential
electors- a group of people chosen by
voters to represent them in making the
selection of candidates
 Each presidential elector would cast 2 electoral
votes- each for a different candidate
 The candidate with the most votes became
President
 The runner up became VP
 Breaking Down the Electoral College
Process
 The number of electors from each state is
equal to the number of its senators and
representatives
# state electors = # state senators + # state representatives
(2 per state)
(# based on population)
 “Winner take all system”:
 Arizona has 11 electoral votes (2 senators+9 reps = 11 ... Same
number of electors = 11 electors)
 11 Democratic electors (people)
 11 Republican electors (people)

If Arizona votes 80% Republican and 20% Democrat, the 11

Republican electoral votes will be the ones that count- The 11
Democratic votes are not counted in the EC
Electoral Representation
 U.S. Presidential Election 2000
Nominee George W. Bush Al Gore
Party Republican Democratic
Home state Texas Tennessee
Running mate Dick Cheney Joe Lieberman
Electoral vote 271 266
States carried 30 20 + DC
Popular vote 50,456,002 50,999,897
Percentage 47.9% 48.4%
 United States Presidential Election 2008
Nominee Barack Obama John McCain
Party Democratic Republican
Home State Illinois Arizona
Running Mate Joe Biden Sarah Palin
Electoral Vote 365 173
States Carried 28 + DC + NE -02 22
Popular Vote 69,456,897 59,934,814
Percentage 52.9 45.7
 Electoral College Game!!
 http://magazines.scholastic.com/elect
ion-2012/lesson-plans/electoral-colle
ge
 Problems
The Electoral College with the El
ectoral Col
lege
Flaws & Defects
 The winner of the popular vote is not
guaranteed the Presidency
 Electors are not required to vote based on
the popular vote (but usually do)
 An election could be turned over to the
HoR to decide the outcome
 In this case- the voting is done by State not by
members, so small States would have an equal
say to larger States (in terms of population)
 The Electoral College- Proposed Reforms
 #1- The District Plan:
 Electors chosen in each State the same way as
Congress
 2 electors chosen for State- they would vote in accord
with the State’s popular vote
 The other electors would be elected separately in their
congressional districts- their vote would be in accord
with their district
 This would do away with the winner-take-all system and
could make electoral votes more representative of the
popular vote
 Arguments:
 Would not eliminate the possibility that the loser of the
popular vote could still win in the EC
 It could promote gerrymandering
 The Electoral College- Proposed Reforms

 #2- The Proportional Plan

 Each presidential candidate would receive the
same share of a State’s electoral vote as s/he
received in the State’s popular vote
 Ex: Arizona has 10 electoral votes
 If a candidate won 40% of the popular vote they would
receive 4 electoral votes (40% X 10= 4)
 Arguments:
 It would still be possible for the loser of the popular
vote to win the presidency in the electoral vote
 Would possibly increase 3rd party candidates since
they would not need to win the support of the entire
State to receive electoral votes
 The Electoral College- Proposed Reforms

 #3- Direct Popular Election

 Do away with the electoral college completely
 Supports the democratic ideal- each and every
vote would count equally
 Simple and easy process
 Arguments:
 would require constitutional amendments that are
time consuming and difficult
 Smaller States would have less “say” in this system
 Some say it would make campaigning more
strenuous for candidates since they would need to
go to each State
 Voting fraud increases
The Electoral College- Proposed Reforms
 #4- The National Bonus Plan
 Winner-take-all feature stays
 National pool of 102 electoral votes would
be awarded to the winner of the popular
vote
 The 102 Bonus electoral votes would be
added to the regular electoral votes won in
the Electoral College
 If the candidate received a total of at least 321
electoral votes, they would be the winner
 Supporters of the EC
 The loser of the popular vote has only won 4
times in U.S. History (55 elections)
 Strengths:
 1: It is a known process and each of the proposed
reforms could have flaws that are not yet known
 2: It identifies the winner quickly & certainly
 With the exception of the 2000 election when a recount
was issued
 The election featured a controversy over who won Florida's
25 electoral votes (and thus the presidency), the recount
process in that state, and the unusual event that the losing
candidate had received more counted popular votes than
the winner.
 When is the President Sworn In?
On January 20, the President is sworn in, in
Washington, D. C. He recites an oath: “I do
solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute
the Office of President of the United States,
and will, to the best of my ability, preserve,
protect, and defend the Constitution of the
United States.”
 What Does the President Do
After He is inaugurated?
After the inauguration, the
President nominates people for
the jobs he or she wants them to
be in charge of in the different
departments of the federal
government. The people who
head each department of the
federal government make up the
President’s cabinet.