Presidential Election Q & A

Yes. Most Presidents win both the popular vote (the total votes cast by U.S. citizens) and the Electoral College vote. But a few have not. In 2000, Democrat Al Gore won the popular vote, but Republican George W. Bush won the Electoral College vote and the election.

Can a President lose the popular vote and still win the presidency?

The president serves for four years. He/She can be-re-elected once.

How long will the elected president serve?

Two major parties have long dominated U.S. politics—Democrats and Republicans. Third parties are any other parties that challenge them. Every presidential election involves several third-party candidates. Most have few followers, and they rarely impact the popularity of major-party candidates. However, sometimes third-party candidates drain important votes from major candidates. In 2000, the Green Party's Ralph Nader was credited with taking away critical votes from Democrat Al Gore in Florida. Gore lost Florida's Electoral College votes, and some argue that the loss cost him the election.

What are "third" parties?

Important topics.

What are issues in an election?

Red states are those that tend to vote for the Republican candidate in presidential races. Blue states tend to vote for the Democrat. These nicknames have come about largely because of television news shows. These programs use maps to show whether a Republican or a Democrat has won a state's Electoral College votes. TV news shows tend to display Republican states as red and Democratic ones as blue. In 2000, reporters began using the terms "red state" and "blue state," and the nicknames stuck.

What are red and blue states?

It is a group of voters organized to support certain public policies. The aim of a political party is to elect officials who will try to carry out the party's policies.

What is a political party?

U.S. Presidents are not elected directly by voters. Instead, the Electoral College elects each President based on how people vote in each state. States are given a certain number of electors based on that state's number of Representatives and Senators. The more-densely populated states have more electors than less-populated states. In most states, the candidate who wins a majority of the popular vote wins all of that state's electoral votes. There are 538 electoral votes, so a candidate must win just over half of them, 270, or more to win.

What is the electoral college?

The vote of the people is called the popular vote.

What is the vote of the people called?

All 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives will be up for election. So will 33 members of the 100-seat U.S. Senate. Many state and local races will also be up for grabs.

What other big offices will be up for grabs in 2012?

This election will feature three presidential debates between the major parties' candidates. The first will take place on October 3 in Denver, Colorado. The second will be held in Hempstead, New York, on October 16. And the third will be take place on October 22 in Boca Raton, Florida. A vice presidential debate will be held on October 11 in Danville, Kentucky.

When are this year's debates?

Whoever wins on November 6 will be sworn into office—or inaugurated—in 2013 on January 20, a date required by the U.S. Constitution.

When does the candidate elected in November actually take office?

Presidential elections are held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. This year, that is November 6. Congress established the timing of presidential elections in 1845.

When is election day?

Democrat: Barack Obama, Republican: Mitt Romney.

Who is running for president?

The debates are one of the best ways for voters to see the candidates defend their voting records and explain their position on issues that voters are concerned about. Doing well in a debate can help put a candidate above his or her competition, and doing poorly can help end a campaign. The first televised presidential debates took place during the 1960 election.

Why do we have presidential debates?

Presidential elections have been held since 1789. Since 1792, the U.S. Constitution has required that presidential elections be held every four years. This year's election will be the 57th presidential race in U.S. history.

Why is 2012 an election year?