How is the U.S. President elected? | Explained

Even though the U.S. citizens will participate in the general election in November to select the next President, the process started months in advance.

The story so far: The United States is all set to elect the country’s next President in its 2024 general election, scheduled for November 5, 2024. While the contest is largely between Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein has made strides too in some voter communities. However, no third-party candidate has ever won the U.S. presidential election.

How is the U.S. President elected?

The U.S. votes for its President on the first Tuesday of November, every four years. The candidates are required to meet certain criteria to be eligible to contest, and the process itself starts months, or even years in advance.

Who can contest the U.S. presidential election?

According to the U.S. Constitution, a candidate must be a natural-born citizen of the country, 35 years of age or older, and a resident of the U.S. for 14 years to be eligible to contest for presidency. They must also register with the Federal Election Commission once they raise or spend more than $5,000 for their campaign. This usually happens in the spring of the year before the election.

Federal candidates are required to depute a principal campaign committee, responsible for managing donations and expenditures for the campaign.

What are presidential primaries and caucuses?

Once candidates announce their intentions to run for the post of the President, the process of primary and caucus debates starts.

Primaries are State-level elections that political parties use to select their presidential candidates. They are usually held around 6-9 months ahead of the general election, and voters choose their candidates anonymously through secret ballots. Some States may require voters to declare their political affiliations to vote in a presidential primary.

Caucuses are different from primaries in the sense that they are run by political parties, not States. The participants vying to be their party’s presidential candidate engage in debates and discussions, and the other participants then decide which candidate they want to choose and support. The number of delegates each candidate earns to support them at the party convention is based on the caucus votes they receive.

Primaries and caucuses can be of three types – open, closed, and semi-closed.

In an open primary or caucus, voters don’t have to be registered with a particular political party to be able to vote.

In a closed primary or caucus, voters can only vote in the primary of the party they are registered with.

Semi-closed or semi-open primaries or caucuses are variations of the above two.

The number of delegates awarded to candidates varies according to States based on rules decided by political parties at State as well as national levels. The selected delegates represent their States at national party conventions.

What are national conventions?

National conventions are where parties select their presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

Two types of delegates participate in national conventions: those who have pledged their support to a candidate in primaries or caucuses, and those who are unpledged and can support any candidate of their choice.

State delegates confirm their choices through votes, and the person who gets the majority becomes the party’s presidential candidate. In case no candidate gets the majority, convention delegates participate in additional rounds of voting to choose a nominee.

The chosen presidential candidate also announces their running mate – the vice-presidential candidate – at the national convention.

Voting in the election

Voting for the U.S. President usually happens on the first Tuesday of November, every four years. Candidates of major political parties are listed on the ballot. Candidates from smaller parties may also be on the ballot in different States, if they meet the eligibility requirements like getting a certain number of signatures on a petition.

Registered voters can participate in the general election even if they did not vote in the primary elections. They can also vote for any candidate, their registration with the party does not matter.

The voting period may be extended for absentee voters or for those who choose to vote through mail. These rules vary in States, and voters usually have to request polling through an absentee vote or through mail. This is usually done before the election day. Some States also allow early in-person voting before the scheduled election day.

The electoral college

The electoral college is the last step in the election of the U.S. President. The President is not elected through the popular vote cast by citizens, but through the electoral college process.

There are 538 electors in the electoral college who indirectly choose the U.S. President. Each State gets the same number of electors as its members of Congress, both House and Senate. Washington D.C. has three electors.

Selecting electors is a two- step process: first, the parties choose potential electors in States before the election. Then, voters in each State select their electors by casting ballots during the general election. However, this happens even though the names of potential electors may or may not appear on the ballot alongside the name of the presidential candidate. So, a voter is actually picking an elector and not the President directly when they cast their vote in the general election.

The votes cast by U.S. citizens go to a statewide tally. In all States except Nebraska and Maine, the winner gets all electoral votes. A candidate needs at least 270 electors’ votes to win the presidential election.

While the general election takes place in November and a projected winner is announced soon after, the electoral college casts their votes in mid-December.

Counting of electoral votes

The U.S. Congress counts the electoral votes in early January. The new President’s term begins January 20, which is also called Inauguration Day.

Published - October 23, 2024 11:28 am IST