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 Republican National Convention Obama’s DNC Acceptance Speech

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? Jill Stein  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:

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, %) 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 direct vote of the people  If chosen by Congress the President would be “too much under the legislative 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. Electoral College Explained…. Electoral College Explained….

“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 = 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

Nominee George W. Bush Al Gore Party Republican Democratic Home state Texas Tennessee Running mate Dick Cheney Joe Lieberman Electoral vote States carried DC Popular vote 50,456,002 50,999,897 Percentage 47.9% 48.4% U.S. Presidential Election 2000

United States Presidential Election 2008

Electoral College Game!!  ion-2012/lesson-plans/electoral- college ion-2012/lesson-plans/electoral- college

The Electoral College 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) Problems with the Electoral College

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

 #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

 #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 The Electoral College- Proposed Reforms

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.