Voting for the presidential post will be held on 5 November in America. The winning candidate will then take office for a term of four years from January 2025Each state has a certain number of so-called electoral college votes
The presidential elections in America have reached a very interesting stage. These days these elections are being mentioned prominently in the media all over the world. In fact, these elections have become very interesting as soon as the official candidate of the ruling Democratic Party and the current President withdrew from the election race.
While Republican candidate Donald Trump has started his election campaign, Vice President Kamala Harris has joined the race after Biden’s withdrawal. Although she has not yet been declared the official candidate of her party, it is expected that she will become the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party.
Question – When is the US presidential election?
– This election will be held on November 5, 2024. Whoever wins the election will complete a four-year term in the White House from January 8, 2025.
The president has the power to pass some laws on his own, but usually he has to work with Congress to pass laws. On the world stage, the American leader has complete freedom to represent the country abroad and conduct foreign policy.
Question – Who are the candidates and how are they nominated?
– Both main parties nominate a presidential candidate by holding a series of voting elections called state primaries and caucuses, where people choose who they want to lead the party into the general election.
Former President Donald Trump won the support of his party with a huge lead over his rivals in the Republican Party. After this, he became the official candidate of the Republican Party.
Earlier, the current President Joe Biden was the official candidate in the Democratic Party, but when questions were raised on him after his health and his contest with Trump in the TV debate, he decided to withdraw from the race. Now the Vice President is in the race for nomination in his party. With the support he is getting in the Democratic Party, it seems that he will not have any problem in becoming the official candidate. After this, he will start his election campaign.
This infographic can be used to understand how the process of these elections starts exactly one year in advance in America. Then what happens in each phase and then how votes are cast. (courtesy – us embassy)
Question – When will the Democratic Party put its final seal on Kamala Harris’s candidature?
– On August 19, there will be a Democratic Party convention in Chicago, in which he can be declared the official candidate of the party.
Question – Don’t other parties or independent candidates contest the American presidential election?
– As is true, there are some independent candidates running for president, including Robert F Kennedy Jr., nephew of former president John F Kennedy.
Question – What is the ideology of Democrats and Republicans?
– Democrats is a liberal political party whose agenda mainly focuses on civil rights, comprehensive social security, and measures to tackle climate change.
While Donald Trump is the official candidate of the Republican Party, the Democratic Party may approve Kamala Harris’ name on August 19. (File photo)
Republicans are a conservative political party in the US. Also known as the GOP or the Grand Old Party, the party stands for austerity, reducing the size of government, gun rights, and tight restrictions on immigration and abortion.
Question – How is the American Presidential election held?
– American elections are a bit different, here the winner is not the one who gets the most votes across the country. Instead both candidates compete to win elections in 50 states.
Each state has a certain number of so-called electoral college votes, partly based on population. There are 538 seats to be contested. The winner is the candidate who wins 270 or more seats.
Electoral college votes matter a lot in this. Whoever gets more of these votes, his victory is usually confirmed. Most of the states are more inclined towards one party or the other, so usually the focus is on a dozen or more states, where either of the two can win. These are known as battleground or swing states.
It’s possible for a candidate to win the most votes nationally — as Hillary Clinton did in 2016 — but still be defeated in the Electoral College.
Question – Are elections for senators held simultaneously with the presidential elections in America?
– Yes, voters will elect new members of Congress in this election along with the President. Congress includes the Representative Assembly, where elections are to be held for all 435 seats. Elections will be held for 33 seats in the Senate.
Republicans currently control the House, which initiates spending plans, while Democrats hold a majority in the Senate, which votes on key government appointments.
Both these houses pass laws. If the controlling party in any house disagrees with the President, then it can curb the plans of the White House.
Question – When will we know who has won the election?
– Usually the winner is declared on the night of the election, but in 2020 it took a few days to count all the votes.
Question – What happens if someone else is elected President in the election, who is not the current President?
– The period after the election is known as the transition period. From November to January, the incumbent president works closely with the elected president to ensure a smooth transition. The president is officially sworn in on January 8 at a ceremony held on the steps of the Capitol Building in Washington DC, known as the inauguration ceremony.
Question – Who can vote in US elections?
– If you are a US citizen and are 18 years of age or older, you should have the right to vote in presidential elections, which take place every four years.
Question – What is the Electoral College or Electoral Vote, which holds great significance in American elections?
– The Electoral College is a process in which electors or representatives from each state cast their votes in proportion to its population to determine who will be the President.
Each state gets a certain number of electors based on its representation in Congress. A total of 538 electors are chosen according to the policy of each state. After the general election, each elector casts one vote and the candidate who gets more than half (270) of the votes wins.
Tags: Donald Trump, Kamala Harris, US Presidential Election 2024
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 29, 2024, 12:15 IST