Article 2 – The executive branch of the us

Article 2: The Executive Branch The President heads the Executive Branch and is described in Article II of the Constitution

Presidential qualifications The US Constitution lists three rules about who can become president: 1. The person must be at least 35 years old 2. A native-born American/US citizen 3. A resident of the US for at least 14 years

Presidential Elections Presidential elections take place every 4 years (November – general election)

Presidential Elections The Constitution does not provide for direct popular election (vote of the people) for the president; it set up an indirect method of election called the Electoral College The Constitution says each state shall appoint electors who then vote for one of the major candidates (Washington D.C. has 3 electoral votes- 23rd Amendment) The Twentieth Amendment (1933) shortens the time between an election and inauguration day; moved from March 4th to January 20th

Electoral College System Each state has as many electoral votes as the total of its US Senators and Representatives (Washington, DC has 3 electoral votes) ADD- every state is guaranteed at least (3) electoral votes Representation allotted by Population Equal Representation- 2

Electoral College System The Electoral College includes 538 electors; it is mostly a “winner-take-all” system; if a candidate wins the popular vote by a tiny majority, that candidate gets all the state’s electoral votes To be elected president a candidate must receive at least half of the 538 electoral votes, a candidate needs 270 votes to win If no candidate receives a majority (270) in the electoral college the House of Representatives elects the winner The formal election by the Electoral College doesn't’t take place until December when electors meet in each state capital to cast their ballots

Term of Office Presidents serve 4 year terms George Washington served two four year terms and refused to run again; many later Presidents followed his example, this is known as a precedent ADD: Washington also warned against political parties calling them corrupt.

Term of Office No president served more than two terms until 1940, when Franklin D. Roosevelt ran for and won a third term; he won a 4th term in 1944 The 22nd Amendment (1951) limits each President to 2 elected terms in office, or a maximum of ten years if his presidency began during another president’s term

Salary and Benefits The president receives a salary of $400,000 per year plus money for expenses and travel; he lives and works in the White House He also has the use of Camp David, an estate in Maryland 60 miles north of Washington, D.C.; it serves as a retreat and a place to host foreign leaders When presidents travel, they command a fleet of special cars, helicopters, and airplanes; for long trips the president uses Air Force One a specially equipped jet

The Vice President The Vice President is elected with the President by the Electoral College; the qualifications are the same as those for the President Article I, section 3 states the VP shall preside over the Senate and vote in case of a tie Side Note: Since 1789, the VP has had to break a tie 245 times. The most recent being in February 2017 when Mike Pence broke a 50-50 tie on Secretary of Education Betsy Devos and he voted to confirm her, 51-50.

The Vice President If the president dies, is removed from office, falls seriously ill, or resigns, the Vice President becomes president Side note: a new VP would have to be appointed The Twelfth Amendment (1804) states that electors should cast separate ballots for President and Vice President Significance of the 12th A: Election of 1796, J. Adams (Federalists) and T. Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) were chosen as P and VP from two opposing parties.

Presidential Succession In 1841 William Henry Harrison became the first President to die in office, his VP John Tyler became President In 1947 Congress passed the Presidential Succession Act which indicates the line of succession after the VP According to this law, if the president and VP die or leave office, the Speaker of the House becomes president Next in line is the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, then the Secretary of State and other members of the cabinet (15 cabinet members – Secretary of State)

Presidential Succession The 25th Amendment (1967) says if the president dies or leaves office the VP becomes president, he then chooses another VP who must be approved by the Senate and House of Representatives Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr.. He became President after Richard Nixon’s resignation in August, 1974. Ford was the first person appointed to the vice- presidency under the terms of the 25th Amendment. Side note: watergate scandal (Nixon vs. US)

Presidential Succession It also gives the VP a role in determining whether a president is disabled and unable to do the job, if that occurs the VP serves as acting President until the President is ready to go back to work 1985- George H. Bush was acting President while Reagan underwent surgery; 2002 and 2007- Dick Cheney was acting President while Bush underwent surgery