HOW A PRESIDENTIAL
ELECTION WORKS
PART I
THE LONGEST LIST OF THE LONGEST STUFF AT THE LONGEST DOMAIN NAME AT LONG LAST

How does a Presidential election work?

The right for the people of the United States to elect a leader through a presidential election was first stated in the United States Constitution. In order to be eligible to run for President, the individual must be a United States citizen, they must have lived in the United States for the fourteen years prior to accepting office, and be over the age of 35. The election is to be held every four years and the process begins long before the actual voting day. Candidates from major and minor political parties and independent candidates start their campaigning to the people and promoting themselves, usually a year in advance but sometimes even sooner. Within this time period, the candidates will also try to raise money as running for election costs a lot of money! It all starts with the question of who will represent the party for the national election and this person must be nominated by that party.

The primaries and caucuses are the first step officially taken in the presidential election. This will decide who will be the candidate for the party and gives the public their first say in the election. Primaries and caucuses are generally held in the February before the election. There are many factors involved in who will run as the candidate for a certain party. Because it is ultimately the public that decides, factors such media coverage, the candidate’s advertising efforts, public polls, and candidate preference surveys, all have a hand in deciding who will become the candidate.

The process of the primaries and caucuses comes to a head at the national conventions of the different political parties. It is here that the candidate who will represent the party is determined. That is determined by the delegates from the states voting for the person that they would like to see in the November election. A candidate will be eligible to run for the office of the President if they have received the majority of the votes from the delegates at the national conventions. Often the votes will need to be cast several different times before a candidate can be viewed as eligible to represent the political party. Once the candidate has been announced, that person must then choose someone as their running mate. This is the person they will take to office with them to become Vice President.

If a current President is rerunning for office, they must still go through the primary process. National conventions are held even if there is no opposing party running as a candidate as well. The national conventions are wonderful places to be and to watch, as people become very excited and display some of the truest patriotism. Signs and flags wave as the party nominees speak to the jubilant crowd. They are a wonderful way to get the American public excited about the upcoming election. If an individual chooses to run independently, they do not need to be nominated by a party but they do have other requirements that must be met. The first is that they must show support for their nomination in the form of signatures. They must also have access to a large amount of funds to support their run in the election and these funds can come from personal loans, fundraising, and personal funds.

PART 2           PART 3

 

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