Title: The Path to the Presidency
1The Path to the Presidency
- 1st Step
- The Primary Process
- A candidate must win the nomination of the PARTY
2Democratic candidates
Sen. Hillary Clinton
Barack Obama
3Other Democrats
Senator Joe Biden
Senator Chris Dodd
4Another Democrat
Former Senator John Edwards
5Republican Candidates
Sen. John McCain
Gov. Mitt Romney
6Other Republicans
Senator Fred Thompson
Governor Mike Huckabee
7Another Republican
8Luckily, not a candidate
9Primary Elections
- Early elections held in each state for candidate
for the PARTY - Begin in January and last until June
- State voters are actually picking delegates to go
to the National Party Convention
- Delegates are the voice of the state at the
National Party Convention - Each state has a specific number of delegates
based on the population of the state - The delegates vote at the Convention for the
candidate
10Early Elections run from Jan-June
11Two types of Primary
- Primary
- Any registered voter may vote
- About 30 participate
- Less exclusive
- Caucus
- Only party members may vote
- Only about 10 of voters participate
- More exclusive
12Who votes in a primary?
Any registered voter!!
13Who votes in a caucus?
Members Only
Dean Scream
14Road to the ConventionImportant dates during
primary season
- Iowa Caucus January 1st important caucus
- N.H. Primary January 1st important primary
- S.C. Primary January 1st important southern
primary
15Iowa Caucus
Dean Scream contest
16 Super Tuesday
- 1st Tuesday in February when lots of states have
their primaries or caucuses - Many candidates drop out of the race when they do
not do well on Super Tuesday
17National Party Convention
- Delegates from all the states gather to make the
final selection for their partys Presidential
Candidate
18Republican National Convention 2004 in New York
19National Party Conventionsmeet in July and
August (usually)
- Democrats convention in Denver, CO (Sept 1-4)
- Republicans convention in St. Paul, MN (Aug
25-28) - Delegates hear speeches, vote on the (1)candidate
for president and (2)VP candidate (3)decide on
party platform issues that the party stands
on.
20When conventions are over the 2 candidates
campaign until General Election Day Tuesday
after the 1st Monday in November
21Step 2The Electoral Process What happens on
Election Day until Inauguration Day
22 On Election Day
- 1. The people in each state go vote General
Election Day (the peoples vote) - 1st Tuesday following 1st Monday in November
- 2. Votes are tallied up in each state
- 3. Whichever candidate wins in that state gets
- all of that states Electoral Votes
23Electoral Votes
- Each state has a specific of Electoral votes.
- Each states electoral votes equals its of
senators and representatives. - Total nationwide is 538.
- The least a state can have is 3.
- California has the most with 55.
- South Carolina has 8.
24(No Transcript)
25States with largest number of Electoral Votes
- California - 55
- Texas - 34
- New York - 31
- Florida - 27
- Pennsylvania - 21
- Illinois - 21
- Ohio - 20
26270 is the number of Electoral Votes needed to Win
- 270 is a majority of 538
- A candidate must have a majority to win
- If no one has a majority, the election process is
turned over to the House of Representatives.
27How it all works
- On General Election Day (T. after 1st M. in Nov.)
registered voters in each state go vote. - Votes are counted w/i each state.
- The candidate that wins in that state gets all
that states E-Votes. - The E-Votes from all the states for each
candidate are tallied up. - Whichever candidate wins 270 E-votes becomes
Prez.
28Cont
- The Electors go vote in their states the 2nd week
in December (Wed. after the 2nd Mon.) - Those votes are officially counted on Jan. 6th
by the President of the Senate - The new President is inaugurated on Jan. 20th.
29The outgoing President is called Lame Duck from
Election Day until Inauguration
30 or
- The incoming President is called President-Elect
from Election Day until Inauguration
31Comparing the Primary Process to the Electoral
Process
Primary Process
Electoral Process
Selects a candidate for the PARTY
Selects the PRESIDENT
States voters vote in each states
primary/caucus (Jan. June)
States voters vote in the General Election (NOV)
32Primary Process
Electoral Process
Voters choose delegates to go to the National
Party Convention (July August)
Voters choose Electors who vote in mid-December
President-Elect is Inaugurated on January 20th
33Why dont we change the system?
It would take an Amendment, and its
to pass an amendment.
HARD