Have you ever wondered how America chooses a president?

The process starts a year before the actual election. Many people want to become president. Each person has different ideas on how our government should work. Sometimes they belong to the same party. (For information about political parties, please see Political Parties article in this issue.) The party then gets together and looks at all the people interested in running for president.

Seal of the President

The Election Process Begins

First comes the primaries and caucuses.

What is a primary? A primary is an election in each party where the members choose a nominee for the coming Presidential Election.

What is a caucus? A caucus is where the members of a party meet privately to plan for action or to select delegates for an upcoming nominating convention.

After the primaries and caucuses are held, each party should have one person that will represent them during the election.

Next, there are also General Elections and National Conventions. National Conventions are held at the end of the primaries and caucuses. Each party holds one. This is where the party “officially” chooses one nominee to represent that party. At the National Conventions each candidate chooses a running mate. If he or she wins, the running mate will become the Vice President.

Sources:

http://bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/election/president.html

www.demconvention.com

www.gopconvention.com

http://askyahoo.com

www.whitehouse.gov

pro.corbis.com

Did you know that in the 1700’s the person who came in second in the race got to be the Vice President?

The General Election is where candidates go campaigning all over the country to gain the support of the American people. In November, Americans will vote for one candidate. You must be eighteen or older to vote.

In General Elections, people in each state don’t actually vote for a specific candidate, they vote for a group called Electors. The electors then vote for the most preferred or most popular candidate. Depending on how much representation each state has in Congress, that determines how many electors each state has. For example, California has fifty-four electors, but Rhode Island only has four. There are 538 total electoral votes.

 In December, after the General election, the electors cast their votes. On January 6th the votes are counted. The candidate with more than half (270) wins the election. On January 20th the candidate and running mate are sworn into office. Now they are President and Vice President of America. They will lead the country for four years. They will also be able to run for re-election for another four years.

The White House (home of the Presdient)

Did you know?

Did you know that John Adams and John Quincy Adams, and George Bush and George W. Bush are the only father and son pairs to both be sworn into office?

Registering to Vote in Colorado

First, you’ll need a voter registration application (www.dmv.org), an acceptable form of identification, and a real mailing address.
  • Next, you must meet the criteria to register. You must have lived in your home for at least thirty days and be eighteen years old by Election Day.
  • Now, you can fill out the form online. Be sure to fill it out completely. It is important that you include a real home address and a verification of your identity.
  • After that’s done, you can mail or hand deliver your application to your county clerk. It must be delivered twenty-nine days before election. Your identity must be verified before your application can be complete.
  • You can mail a copy of any identification like a Colorado driver’s license or a Colorado state ID card. Then you can get your voter identification card by mail.
  • The last thing you need to do when you get your card by mail, is to make sure there aren’t any mistakes. If there is, you must contact your county clerk’s office immediately.
  • Now you can vote in the presidential election.
  • To find out where your county clerks’ office is, go to elections.colorado.gov. Click on the govotecolorado.com link. There you’ll see Get Involved. Underneath, click on Contact your county clerk. Then select your county.


    Thinking about Running for President?

    You must be:

    * At least 35 years old

    * Born in the United States

    * Must have lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years

    2008 Democratic Convention

    Where: Denver, Colorado

    When: August 25-28, 2008

    2008 Republican Convention

    Where: Minneapolis – Saint Paul, Minnesota

    When: September 1-4, 2008