1. Elections and Voting

2. Types of Elections
Besides primary elections, there are three types of elections in the United States:
general elections
elections on issues
special elections

3. The General Election
After primary races narrow the field, voters choose candidates in a general election that occurs on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.
All seats in the House and about one-third of the seats in the Senate are at stake in general elections every even-numbered year.
Presidents are elected every four years.

4. Voting on Issues
Citizens can propose new laws or state constitutional amendments through an initiative.
If enough voters sign a petition, the proposed law, or proposition, is put on the ballot at the next general election.
Citizens may petition to have a state or local law referred, or sent back, to the voters as a referendum on the ballot. The voters can then approve or reject the law.

5. Special Elections
A runoff is a special election held to determine a winner when none of the candidates wins a majority in the general election.
A recall is a special election in which citizens can vote to remove an official from office.

6. Presidential Elections
The three steps in a presidential election are:
Nomination
Campaign
The Vote

7. Nomination & Campaigning
Presidential hopefuls start campaigning for their party’s nomination at least a year before the election.
Candidates give speeches, appear on TV, and hold news conferences.
They may face their opponents in televised debates.

8. The Vote
Presidents are chosen by the Electoral College, not by direct popular vote.
Each state has a slate of electors pledged to each candidate.
The popular vote chooses the slate of electors.
In the winner-take-all system, the candidate who wins the popular vote takes all the state’s electoral votes.

9. Electoral Votes
The winning electors cast their votes in their state’s capital in December.
Congress counts the votes.
Each state has one elector for each of its U.S. senators and representatives.
To win, a candidate must win 270 of the 538 total electoral votes.

10. The Electoral College The Electoral College system was a compromise.
Some Founders wanted direct popular election of the president. Others wanted Congress to name the president.
Their compromise was to have the state legislatures choose electors.
Now the voters in each state directly choose the electors.

11. Problems with the Electoral College
Some critics charge that under the winner-take-all system, a candidate who loses the popular vote can still win the electoral vote and the presidency.
Also, the winner-take-all system makes it hard for third-party candidates to take any electoral votes.

13. Party Tickets
If you vote for all candidates in one political party, you are voting a straight ticket.
If you choose candidates from both parties, you are voting a split ticket.
You may choose to cast a write-in vote by writing the name of someone not on the ballot.

14. Absentee Ballot
People away from home or too sick to get to the polls on Election Day can vote by absentee ballot.
They mark the ballot and return it by mail.

15. Exit Polls
News media and party workers conduct exit polls—asking voters leaving the polls how they voted.
Specialists use the results to predict winners early.
Television networks may announce winners before voters in Western time zones have voted.
Critics charge that early calls may persuade many Westerners not to vote.

16. Apathy
Some people don’t vote because they think no candidates represent their interests or think their vote will not matter.
Another reason is apathy, or lack of interest.
(The 2000 presidential election was decided by about 500 votes)