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Elections in America
As voters, citizens choose who they want to represent them. The choices are made during elections. Every even-numbered year elections are held for Congress and some state and local government offices in the United States. Americans elect all 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives and approximately one-third of the 100 members of the U.S. Senate every two years. Senators serve staggered terms of six years each. Americans elect a President and Vice-President every four years.
Read "Campaigns and Elections" to learn more about elections in America.
Many states and local jurisdictions also hold "off-year" elections in odd-numbered years in addition to federal, state, and local elections held in even-numbered years.
In the United States, elections may involve more than just choosing people for public office. In some states and localities, questions of public policy may also be placed on the ballot for voter approval or disapproval.
Referendums, measures referred to voters by the state legislature or local board or council, and initiatives, measures placed on the ballot by citizen petition, usually concern bond issues and other mandates on government. In recent decades, these ballot measures have had a significant impact, particularly on state budgets and policies.
Read BallotPedia: Recall
Read BallotPedia: Initiative and referendum
There are three different types of elections, primary, general, and special.
Primary Elections
Primary Elections are held before the general election to choose a candidate from each party to run in the general election. The winning candidates in the primary move on to represent their party in the general election.
There are two different types of primary elections: closed primary and open primary. You must be a registered party member to vote in a closed primary. Any registered voter can vote in either party's open primary.
Read BallotPedia: Primary election.
Rather than having primary elections, a few states allow delegates who represent the party to choose candidates during a gathering of party members at the local and state levels.
Nominating Conventions are party meetings that are open to the public at which candidates are selected by delegates. Local candidates and delegates to the state conventions are chosen at the local conventions. State candidates and delegates to the national convention are chosen at the state conventions.
Caucuses are meetings in which state party leaders and party members choose all of the party's candidates. Local caucuses endorse candidates and choose delegates for the next level of caucuses.
General Elections
Once the primaries conclude, the candidates who win their party's nomination face each other in the general election. General Elections are held to determine who will be elected to hold office. In the general election, voters make the final determination from among the party candidates listed on the ballot. More voters participate in general elections than in primary elections. A plurality, or more votes than any other candidate, of votes is required to win in most elections rather than a majority of votes.
The general election ballot may also include independent candidates who gain access to the ballot by submitting a specified number of petition signatures, rather than by the traditional primary method. The ballot may include a place to "write in" the name of candidate who was not nominated by his or her party or who did not qualify by petition.
Special Elections
Occasionally, there is a need for a Special Election to decide an issue at the state or local level. For example, if there is a need to replace an officeholder who has resigned or died while in office, a special election may be held to replace the position.
Special elections can be scheduled by state and local jurisdictions at any time to serve a specific purpose.
Presidential Elections
Every four years on the Tuesday after the first Monday of November, the general election for U.S. President takes place. Prior to this general election, states hold primary elections to choose delegates to the national convention where the party nominee is selected. These individual state primaries and caucuses typically take place between January and June, followed by the national conventions in the summer before the election.
Since the 1970s, the nominee from each of the two major political parties has gained a majority of delegates before the primary season concluded and the national convention was held. Therefore, the national conventions have become formal and ceremonial events to bolster media coverage of each party's nominee.
National Conventions
The national convention for each party has become a major political event with televised speeches by party leaders. The convention is an opportunity for the party to outline its platform and define differences with the opposition. It is also the main event to promote the party nominees.
Electoral College
Every four years on Election Day, the American people go to the polls to cast votes that represent their choice for president of the United States. The popular vote is a count of every vote cast and is the first set of election results. However, the results do not actually determine who will be elected President. The results actually determine whom each state's electors will support when they meet to participate in the Electoral College, which is the formal body that elects the President. In order to win, a candidate must have 270 out of a total of 538 electoral votes. This number is half of 538 (269) plus one, which is considered an absolute majority.
Political Party Organization
America has a two-party system dominated by the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Political parties, like government, are organized on three levels, local, state, and national.
- Local parties are usually organized at the county level and run by a committee and a chairperson. Counties are divided into precincts and wards for running elections and voting on the local level.
- State parties are run by a committee of representatives from the party's county committees.
- National parties are run by a chairperson who manages a large staff to help conduct party operations like fundraising and campaigning.
Although the two major parties organize and dominate the government at the national, state, and local levels, they have a decentralized structure. The national party organizations rarely interfere in state and local party affairs.
Political Party Roles
Political parties have several important roles in our political process. The main role of a party is to name candidates for elective office in the nominating process. They provide support, including money and campaign workers, to candidates who uphold party views.
Parties also help in the electoral process by educating the electorate on the issues and by registering voters. In addition, they assist with the operations of our government. In summary, political parties nominate, elect, inform the public, and monitor the officials who represent "We the People" in our government.
Read "Political Parties" to learn more about the roles of political parties.
Political Party Constituency
In recent decades, more and more individual voters classify themselves as independents rather than identifying with the Democrats or Republicans. Yet, according to opinion polls, even those who say that they are independents tend to have partisan leanings toward one party or another.
- Democratic constituents, or those who identify with the Democratic Party, tend to be on the more liberal or left side of the political spectrum. Liberals support more government action and involvement to bring about political, social, and economic change.
- Republican constituents, or those who identify with the Republican Party, tend to be more on the conservative or right side of the political spectrum. Conservatives believe in limited government, traditional values, free markets, and lower taxes.
Explore Conservative vs. Liberal Beliefs to learn more about which side of the political spectrum you tend to lean.
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