Almost every nation in the world conducts presidential elections at one point in time. This is done so that the nation can choose a leader of their choice to rule and govern them. As such, presidential elections are significant in all nations since the citizens get the opportunity to choose the president of their country.
Different government systems use different methods to elect their presidents as well as conducting the election process at different periods. In this paper, the USA presidential election process as well as the criterion used in elections will be discussed.
In the United States, elections are normally carried out on the Election Day which falls between the 2nd and 8th of November after every four years. The trend in the United States from 1792 has been that the presidential elections take place quadrennially. For instance, the previously held elections in the USA took place November 4, 2008. In that case, the next presidential elections are bound to take place on November 6, 2012 according to the stipulated election laws.
The laws of the state and federal government normally regulate the USA presidential elections (Mayer and Bernstein). As such, the process entails a certain number of electors from the Electoral College being allocated to each state. The allocation is made in such a way that it corresponds to the number of senators as well as the Representatives of the U.S Congress.
The candidates wishing to contest for any post in the government are required to be certified by the Congress as early as in the month of January in the Election year. The voters on the other hand are given the authority to vote for any candidate they deem fit for the post according to their opinion. In order to ensure fairness in the elections, the votes are cast in secured ballot boxes.
For one to be certified as a presidential candidate in the United States they must bear the following characteristics:
- They must be 35 years and above
- They must have been U.S residents for a period of at least 14 years.
- They must be native citizens of USA by birth.
- They must have served as USA presidents for only one term or none at all.
From the above requirements, it means that one cannot be elected as the president of the USA for a third term. In that case, the constitution stipulates that the presidents are only to serve for a maximum of two terms only. In addition to this, the presidential candidates are normally selected through primary elections conducted by the delegates of the political party. In this case, the presidential candidate is entitled to win the nomination by a majority vote from the delegates.
In other instances, the presidential candidates are selected because of the prominence they have in the party. In the presidential election, a number of candidates contest for the seat depending on the number chosen from different parties. For instance, during the 2008 USA presidential elections, two candidates from the Republican and Democrats parties contested the seat.
Once the presidential candidate wins the election, they are given the option of selecting their vice presidents. As the trend has been in the United States, most presidential candidates normally have running mates who end up being the vice-president once the candidate wins.
Works Cited
Mayer, William and Bernstein, Jonathan. The Making of the Presidential Candidates. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2012. Print.
“Quick guide: US presidential elections.” BBC. January 26, 2007. Web.