text:
Elections in the United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
See also: Politics of the United States
See also: United States presidential election
An 1846 painting by George Caleb Bingham showing a polling judge administering an oath to a voter
This article is part of a series on the
Politics of the
United States of America
Federal Government[show]
Constitution of the United States
Law
Taxation
Legislature[show]
United States Congress
House of Representatives
Speaker Paul Ryan (R)
Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R)
Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D)
Congressional districts
United States Senate
President Mike Pence (R)
President Pro Tempore Orrin Hatch (R)
President Pro Tempore Emeritus Patrick Leahy (D)
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R)
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D)
Executive[show]
President of the United States
Donald Trump (R)
Vice President of the United States
Mike Pence (R)
Cabinet
Federal agencies
Executive Office
Judiciary[show]
Supreme Court of the United States
Chief Justice John Roberts
Kennedy
Thomas
Ginsburg
Breyer
Alito
Sotomayor
Kagan
Gorsuch
Courts of Appeals
District Courts (list)
Other tribunals
Elections[show]
Presidential elections
Midterm elections
Off-year elections
Political parties[show]
Democratic
Republican
Third parties
Federalism[show]
State Government
Governors
Legislatures (List)
State courts
Local government
Other countries
Atlas
v
t
e
Elections in the United States are held for government officials at the federal, state, and local levels. At the federal level, the nation's head of state, the President, is elected indirectly by the people of each state, through an Electoral College. Today, these electors almost always vote with the popular vote of their state. All members of the federal legislature, the Congress, are directly elected by the people of each state. There are many elected offices at state level, each state having at least an elective Governor and legislature. There are also elected offices at the local level, in counties, cities, towns, townships, boroughs, and villages. According to a study by political scientist Jennifer Lawless, there were 519,682 elected officials in the United States as of 2012.[1]
While the United States Constitution does set parameters for the election of federal officials, state law, not federal, regulates most aspects of elections in the U.S., including primaries, the eligibility of voters (beyond the basic constitutional definition), the running of each state's electoral college, as well as the running of state and local elections. All elections—federal, state, and local—are administered by the individual states.[2]
The restriction and extension of voting rights to different groups has been a contested process throughout United States history. The federal government has also been involved in attempts to increase voter turnout, by measures such as the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. The financing of elections has also long been controversial, because private sources make up substantial amounts of campaign contributions, especially in federal elections. Voluntary public funding for candidates willing to accept spending limits was introduced in 1974 for presidential primaries and elections. The Federal Elections Commission, created in 1975 by an amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act, has the responsibility to disclose campaign finance information, to enforce the provisions of the law such as the limits and prohibitions on contributions, and to oversee the public funding of U.S. presidential elections.
Contents
[hide]
1 Voting
1.1 Eligibility
1.2 Voter registration
1.3 Absentee voting
1.4 Mail ballots
1.5 Early voting
1.6 Voting equipment
2 Levels of election
2.1 Federal elections
2.1.1 Presidential elections
2.1.2 Congressional elections
2.1.2.1 Senate elections
2.1.2.2 House of Representatives elections
2.2 State elections
2.3 Local elections
3 Comparison of recent and upcoming election years
4 Features of the election system
4.1 Party systems
4.2 Ballot access
4.3 Campaign finance
4.4 Primaries and caucuses
5 Election information on the web
6 Hurdles
7 See also
8 References
9 External links
Voting[edit]
The most common method used in U.S. elections is the first-past-the-post system, where the highest polling candidate wins the election. Some may use a two-round system, where if no candidate receives a required number of votes then there is a runoff between the two candidates with the most votes.[citation needed]
Since 2002, several cities have adopted instant-runoff voting in their elections. Voters rank the candidates in order of preference rather than voting for a single candidate. If a candidate secures more than half of votes cast, that candidate wins. Otherwise, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. Ballots assigned to the eliminated candidate are recounted and assigned to those of the remaining candidates who rank next in order of preference on each ballot. This process continues until one candidate wins by obtaining more than half the votes.[citation needed]
Eligibility[edit]
Main article: Voting rights in the United States
The eligibility of an individual for voting is set out in the constitution and also regulated at state level. The constitution states that suffrage cannot be denied on grounds of race or color, sex, or age for citizens eighteen years or older. Beyond these basic qualifications, it is the responsibility of state legislatures to regulate voter eligibility. Some states ban convicted criminals, especially felons, from voting for a fixed period of time or indefinitely.[3] The number of American adults who are currently or permanently ineligible to vote due to felony convictions is estimated to be 5.3 million.[4] Some states also have legacy constitutional statements barring legally declared incompetent from voting; such references are generally considered obsolete and are being considered for review or removal where they appear.[5]
Voter registration[edit]
Main article: Voter registration in the United States
While the federal government has jurisdiction over federal elections, most election laws are decided at the state level. All U.S. states except North Dakota require that citizens who wish to vote be registered. Traditionally, voters had to register at state offices to vote, but in the mid-1990s efforts were made by the federal government to make registering easier, in an attempt to increase turnout. The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (the "Motor Voter" law) required state governments that receive certain types of federal funding to make the voter registration process easier by providing uniform registration services through drivers' license registration centers, disability centers, schools, libraries, and mail-in registration. Other states allow citizens same-day registration on Election Day.
In many states, citizens registering to vote may declare an affiliation with a political party.[6] This declaration of affiliation does not cost money, and does not make the citizen a dues-paying member of a party. A party cannot prevent a voter from declaring his or her affiliation with them, but it can refuse requests for full membership. In some states, only voters affiliated with a party may vote in that party's primary elections (see below). Declaring a party affiliation is never required. Some states, including Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Washington, practice non-partisan registration.[7]
Absentee voting[edit]
An absentee ballot paper for Milton, New Hampshire. This ballot also contains a referendum placed on the ballot by the state legislature.
Voters unable or unwilling to vote at polling stations on Election Day can vote via absentee ballots. Absentee ballots are most commonly sent and received via the United States Postal Service. Despite their name, absentee ballots are often requested and submitted in person. About half of all states and U.S. territories allow "no excuse absentee," where no reason is required to request an absentee ballot. Others require a valid reason, such as infirmity or travel, be given before a voter can participate using an absentee ballot. Some states, including California,[8] and Washington[9][10] allow citizens to apply for permanent absentee voter status, which will automatically receive an absentee ballot for each election. Typically a voter must request an absentee ballot before the election occurs.
A significant source of absentee ballots is the population of Americans living outside the United States. In 1986 Congress enacted the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA). UOCAVA requires that the states and territories allow members of the United States Uniformed Services and merchant marine, their family members, and United States citizens residing outside the United States to register and vote absentee in elections for Federal offices. Though many states had pre-existing statutes in place UOCAVA made it mandatory and nationally uniform. "Generally, all U.S. citizens 19 years or older who are or will be residing outside the United States during an election period are eligible to vote absentee in any election for Federal office. In addition, all members of the Uniformed Services, their family members and members of the Merchant Marine and their family members, who are U.S. citizens, may vote absentee in Federal, state and local elections."[11] Absentee ballots from these voters can often be transmitted private delivery services, fax, or email.[12]
Mail ballots[edit]
Mail ballots are similar in many respects to an absentee ballot. However they are used for Mailing Precincts where on Election Day no polling place is opened for a specific precinct.[13] In Oregon, Washington, and Colorado, all ballots are delivered through the mail.
Early voting[edit]
Main article: Early voting § United States
Early voting is a formal process where voters can cast their ballots prior to the official Election Day. Early voting in person is allowed in 33 states and in Washington, D.C., with no excuse required.[14]
Voting equipment[edit]
An "I voted" sticker given to Boston voters in 2016
Further information: Voting machine
Voters casting their ballots in polling places record their votes most commonly with optical scan voting machines or DRE voting machines. Voting machine selection is typically done through a state's local election jurisdiction including counties, cities, and townships. Many of these local jurisdictions have changed their voting equipment since 2000 due to the passage of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), which allocated funds for the replacement of lever machine and punch card voting equipment.
Since the 1980s many jurisdictions and voting locations have given out "I Voted" stickers to people casting ballots. In the state of Illinois it is a state law to have stickers available to voters after they have cast their ballots. State and local governments pay $30 million per year for the stickers that cost about one cent each.[15]
Levels of election[edit]
Federal elections[edit]
See also: Election Day (United States)
The United States has a presidential system of government, which means that the executive and legislature are elected separately. Article One of the United States Constitution requires that any election for the U.S. President must occur on a single day throughout the country; elections for Congressional offices, however, can be held at different times. Congressional and presidential elections take place simultaneously every four years, and the intervening Congressional elections, which take place every two years, are called Midterm elections.
The constitution states that members of the United States House of Representatives must be at least 25 years old, a citizen of the United States for at least seven years, and be a (legal) inhabitant of the state they represent. Senators must be at least 30 years old, a citizen of the United States for at least nine years, and be a (legal) inhabitant of the state they represent. The President must be at least 35 years old, a natural born citizen of the United States and a resident in the United States for at least fourteen years. It is the responsibility of state legislatures to regulate the qualifications for a candidate appearing on a ballot paper, although in order to get onto the ballot, a candidate must often collect a legally defined number of signatures.
Presidential elections[edit]
Main articles: United States presidential election and Electoral College (United States)
The President and the Vice President are elected together in a Presidential election.[16] It is an indirect election, with the winner being determined by votes cast by electors of the Electoral College. In modern times, voters in each state select a slate of electors from a list of several slates designated by different parties or candidates, and the electors typically promise in advance to vote for the candidates of their party (whose names of the presidential candidates usually appear on the ballot rather than those of the individual electors). The winner of the election is the candidate with at least 270 Electoral College votes. It is possible for a candidate to win the electoral vote, and lose the (nationwide) popular vote (receive fewer votes nationwide than the second ranked candidate). Prior to ratification of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution (1804), the runner-up in a Presidential election[17] became the Vice President.
Electoral College votes are cast by individual states by a group of electors; each elector casts one electoral college vote. Until the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution of 1961 the District of Columbia citizens did not have representation and/or electors in the electoral college. In modern times, with electors usually committed to vote for a party candidate in advance, electors that vote against the popular vote in their state are called faithless electors, and occurrences are rare. State law regulates how states cast their electoral college votes. In all states except Maine and Nebraska, the candidate that wins the most votes in the state receives all its electoral college votes (a "winner takes all" system). From 1969 in Maine, and from 1991 in Nebraska, two electoral votes are awarded based on the winner of the statewide election, and the rest (two in Maine, three in Nebraska) go to the highest vote-winner in each of the state's congressional districts.
[show]
v
t
e
United States presidential elections
Elections by year
1788–89
1792
1796
1800
1804
1808
1812
1816
1820
1824
1828
1832
1836
1840
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
Elections by state
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
Washington, D.C.
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Primaries and caucuses
Iowa caucuses
New Hampshire primary
South Carolina primary
Super Tuesday
Nominating conventions
Brokered convention
Convention bounce
Superdelegate
Electoral College
and Popular vote
Results
Summary
Elections in which the winner lost the popular vote
Electoral College margins
Electoral College results by state
Electoral vote changes between elections
Electoral vote recipients
Popular vote margins
Contingent election
Faithless elector
Unpledged elector
Voter turnout
Related topics
Campaign slogans
Historical election polling
Election Day
Major party tickets
Major party losers
Presidential debates
October surprise
Red states and blue states
Swing state
Election recount
House elections
Senate elections
Gubernatorial elections
Congressional elections[edit]
Congress has two chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Senate elections[edit]
The Senate has 100 members, elected for a six-year term in dual-seat constituencies (2 from each state), with one-third being renewed every two years. The group of the Senate seats that is up for election during a given year is known as a "class"; the three classes are staggered so that only one of the three groups is renewed every two years. Until the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1913, States chose how to elect Senators, and they were often elected by state legislatures, not the electorate of states.
[show]
v
t
e
United States Senate elections
Multiple-date
elections
1788/89
1790/91
1792/93
1794/95
1796/97
1798/99
1800/01
1802/03
1804/05
1806/07
1808/09
1810/11
1812/13
1814/15
1816/17
1818/19
1820/21
1822/23
1824/25
1826/27
1828/29
1830/31
1832/33
1834/35
1836/37
1838/39
1840/41
1842/43
1844/45
1846/47
1848/49
1850/51
1852/53
1854/55
1856/57
1858/59
1860/61
1862/63
1864/65
1866/67
1868/69
1870/71
1872/73
1874/75
1876/77
1878/79
1880/81
1882/83
1884/85
1886/87
1888/89
1890/91
1892/93
1894/95
1896/97
1898/99
1900/01
1902/03
1904/05
1906/07
1908/09
1910/11
1912/13
Single-date
elections
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
Special elections
Election disputes
Results by state
List of elections in the United States
House elections
Presidential elections
Gubernatorial elections
House of Representatives elections[edit]
A chart of party balance in the House
The House of Representatives has 435 members, elected for a two-year term in single-seat constituencies. House of Representatives elections are held every two years on the first Tuesday after November 1 in even years. Special House elections can occur between if a member dies or resigns during a term. House elections are first-past-the-post elections that elect a Representative from each of 435 House districts which cover the United States. The non-voting delegates of Washington, D.C. and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands are also elected.
House elections occur every two years, correlated with presidential elections or halfway through a President's term. The House delegate of Puerto Rico, officially known as the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, is elected to a four-year term, coinciding with those of the President.
As the redistricting commissions of states are often partisan, districts are often drawn which benefit incumbents. An increasing trend has been for incumbents to have an overwhelming advantage in House elections, and since the 1994 election, an unusually low number of seats has changed hands in each election.[citation needed] Due to gerrymandering, fewer than 10% of all House seats are contested in each election cycle. Over 90% of House members are reelected every two years, due to lack of electoral competition. Gerrymandering of the House, combined with the divisions inherent in the design of the Senate and of the Electoral College, result in a discrepancy between the percentage of popular support for various political parties and the actual level of the parties' representation.
[show]
v
t
e
United States House of Representatives elections
Years
1788/89
1790
1792
1794
1796
1798
1800
1802
1804
1806
1808
1810
1812
1814
1816
1818
1820
1822
1824
1826
1828
1830
1832
1834
1836
1838
1840
1842
1844
1846
1848
1850
1852
1854
1856
1858/59
1860
1862
1864
1866
1868
1870/71
1872
1874
1876
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
Special
1801
1917
1973
1989
1991
2001
110th Congress
111th Congress
All
Senate elections
Presidential elections
Gubernatorial elections
State elections[edit]
State law and state constitutions, controlled by state legislatures regulate elections at state level and local level. Various officials at state level are elected. Since the separation of powers applies to states as well as the federal government, state legislatures and the executive (the governor) are elected separately. Governors and lieutenant governor are elected in all states, in some states on a joint ticket and in some states separately, some separately in different electoral cycles. The governors of the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands are also elected. In some states, executive positions such as Attorney General and Secretary of State are also elected offices. All members of state legislatures and territorial jurisdiction legislatures are elected. In some states, members of the state supreme court and other members of the state judiciary are elected. Proposals to amend the state constitution are also placed on the ballot in some states.
As a matter of convenience and cost saving, elections for many of these state and local offices are held at the same time as either the federal presidential or midterm elections. There are a handful of states, however, that instead hold their elections during odd-numbered "off years."
[show]
v
t
e
United States gubernatorial elections
List of current Governors
1913
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
House elections
Senate elections
Presidential elections
Local elections[edit]
At the local level, county and city government positions are usually filled by election, especially within the legislative branch. The extent to which offices in the executive or judicial branches are elected vary from county-to-county or city-to-city. Some examples of local elected positions include sheriffs at the county level and mayors and school board members at the city level. Like state elections, an election for a specific local office may be held at the same time as either the presidential, midterm, or off-year elections.
Comparison of recent and upcoming election years[edit]
Basic rotation of U.S. general elections (fixed-terms only[1])
Year
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
Type
Presidential Off-yeara Midterm Off-yearb Presidential
President
Yes No Yes
Senate
Class III (34 seats) No Class I (33 seats) No Class II (33 seats)
House
All 435 seats[2] No All 435 seats[3] No All 435 seats[2]
Gubernatorial
11 states, 2 territories
AS, DE, IN, MO, MT, NH, NC, ND, PR, UT, VT, WA, WV 2 states
NJ, VA 36 states, 3 territories[4]
AL, AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, GU, HI, ID, IL, IA, KS, ME, MP, MD, MA, MI, MN, NE, NV, NH, NM, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VI, VT, WI, WY 3 states
KY, LA, MS 11 states, 2 territories
AS, DE, IN, MO, MT, NH, NC, ND, PR, UT, VT, WA, WV
Other state and local offices
Varies
1 This table does not include special elections, which may be held to fill political offices that have become vacant between the regularly scheduled elections.
2 As well as all six non-voting delegates of the U.S. House.
3 As well as five non-voting delegates of the U.S. House. The Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico instead serves a four-year term that coincides with the presidential term.
4 The Governors of New Hampshire and Vermont are each elected to two-year terms. The other 48 state governors serve four-year terms.
view
talk
edit
Features of the election system[edit]
Party systems[edit]
Main articles: Party system and Politics of the United States
Americans vote for a specific candidate instead of directly selecting a particular political party. The United States Constitution has never formally addressed the issue of political parties. The Founding Fathers such as Alexander Hamilton and James Madison did not support domestic political factions at the time the Constitution was written.[18] In addition, the first President of the United States, George Washington, was not a member of any political party at the time of his election or throughout his tenure as president. Furthermore, he hoped that political parties would not be formed, fearing conflict and stagnation. Nevertheless, the beginnings of the American two-party system emerged from his immediate circle of advisers, with Hamilton and Madison ending up being the core leaders in this emerging party system.
Thus, it is up to the candidate to decide under what party he/she should run, registers to run, pays the fees, etc. In the primary elections, the party organization stays neutral until one candidate has been elected. The platform of the party is written by the winning candidate (in presidential elections; in other elections no platform is involved). Each candidate has his or her own campaign, fund raising organization, etc. The primary elections in the main parties are organized by the states, who also register the party affiliation of the voters (this also makes it easier to gerrymander the congressional districts). The party is thus little more than a campaign organization for the main elections.
However, elections in the United States often do become de facto national races between the political parties. In what is known as "presidential coattails", candidates in presidential elections usually bring out supporters who then vote for his or her party's candidates for other offices, usually resulting in the presidential winner's party gaining seats in Congress. On the other hand, midterm elections are sometimes regarded as a referendum on the sitting president's and/or incumbent party's performance.[19][20] There is a historical pattern that the incumbent president's party loses seats in midterm elections. This may be because the President's popularity has slipped since election, or because the President's popularity encouraged supporters to come out to vote for him or her in the presidential election, but these supporters are less likely to vote when the President is not up for election.
Ballot access[edit]
Main article: Ballot access
Ballot access refers to the laws which regulate under what conditions access is granted for a candidate or political party to appear on voters' ballots. Each State has its own ballot access laws to determine who may appear on ballots and who may not. According to Article I, Section 4, of the United States Constitution, the authority to regulate the time, place, and manner of federal elections is up to each State, unless Congress legislates otherwise. Depending on the office and the state, it may be possible for a voter to cast a write-in vote for a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot, but it is extremely rare for such a candidate to win office.
Campaign finance[edit]
Main article: Campaign finance in the United States
The funding of electoral campaigns has always been a controversial issue in American politics. Infringement of free speech (First Amendment) is an argument against restrictions on campaign contributions, while allegations of corruption arising from unlimited contributions and the need for political equality are arguments for the other side.[21] Private funds are a major source of finance, from individuals and organizations. The first attempt to regulate campaign finance by legislation was in 1867, but major legislation, with the intention to widely enforce, on campaign finance was not introduced until the 1970s.
Money contributed to campaigns can be classified into "hard money" and "soft money". Hard money is money contributed directly to a campaign, by an individual or organization. Soft money is money from an individual or organization not contributed to a campaign, but spent in candidate specific advertising or other efforts that benefits that candidate by groups supporting the candidate, but legally not coordinated by the official campaign.
The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 required candidates to disclose sources of campaign contributions and campaign expenditure. It was amended in 1974 to legally limit campaign contributions. It banned direct contributing to campaigns by corporations and trade unions and limited individual donations to $1,000 per campaign. It introduced public funding for Presidential primaries and elections. The Act also placed limits of $5,000 per campaign on PACs (political action committees). The limits on individual contributions and prohibition of direct corporate or labor union campaigns led to a huge increase in the number of PACs. Today many labor unions and corporations have their own PACs, and over 4,000 in total exist. The 1974 amendment also specified a Federal Election Commission, created in 1975 to administer and enforce campaign finance law. Various other provisions were also included, such as a ban on contributions or expenditures by foreign nationals (incorporated from the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) (1966)).
The case of Buckley v. Valeo (1976) challenged the Act. Most provisions were upheld, but the court found that the mandatory spending limit imposed was unconstitutional, as was the limit placed on campaign spending from the candidate's personal fortune and the provision that limited independent expenditures by individuals and organizations supporting but not officially linked to a campaign. The effect of the first decision was to allow candidates such as Ross Perot and Steve Forbes to spend enormous amounts of their own money in their own campaigns. The effect of the second decision was to allow the culture of "soft money" to develop.
A 1979 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act allowed political parties to spend without limit on get-out-the-vote and voter registration activities conducted primarily for a presidential candidate. Later, they were permitted by FECA to use "soft money", unregulated, unlimited contributions to fund this effort. Increasingly, the money began to be spent on issue advertising, candidate specific advertising that was being funded mostly by soft money.
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 banned local and national parties from spending "soft money" and banned national party committees from accepting or spending soft money. It increased the limit of contributions by individuals from $1,000 to $2,000. It banned corporations or labor unions from funding issue advertising directly, and banned the use of corporate or labor money for advertisements that mention a federal candidate within 60 days of a general election or 30 days of a primary. The constitutionality of the bill was challenged and in December 2003, the Supreme Court upheld most provisions of the legislation. (See McConnell v. FEC.)
A large number of "527 groups" were active for the first time in the 2004 election. These groups receive donations from individuals and groups and then spend the money on issue advocacy, such as the anti-Kerry ads by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. This is a new form of soft money, and not surprisingly it is controversial. Many 527 groups have close links with the Democratic or Republican parties, even though legally they cannot coordinate their activities with them. John McCain, one of the senators behind the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, and President Bush have both declared a desire to ban 527s.
Changing campaign finance laws is a highly controversial issue. Some reformers wish to see laws changed in order to improve electoral competition and political equality. Opponents wish to see the system stay as it is, whereas other reformers wish even fewer restrictions on the freedom to spend and contribute money. The Supreme Court has made it increasingly difficult for those who wish to regulate election financing, but options like partial public funding of campaigns are still possible and offer the potential to address reformers' concerns with minimal restrictions on the freedom to contribute.[22]
Primaries and caucuses[edit]
Main articles: Primary elections in the United States and Caucus
In partisan elections, candidates are chosen by primary elections (abbreviated to "primaries") and caucuses in the states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
A primary election is an election in which registered voters in a jurisdiction (nominating primary) select a political party's candidate for a later election. There are various types of primary: either the whole electorate is eligible, and voters choose one party's primary at the polling booth (an open primary); or only independent voters can choose a party's primary at the polling booth (a semi-closed primary); or only registered members of the party are allowed to vote (closed primary). The blanket primary, when voters could vote for all parties' primaries on the same ballot was struck down by the United States Supreme Court as violating the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of assembly in the case California Democratic Party v. Jones. Primaries are also used to select candidates at the state level, for example in gubernatorial elections.
Caucuses also nominate candidates by election, but they are very different from primaries. Caucuses are meetings that occur at precincts and involve discussion of each party's platform and issues such as voter turnout in addition to voting. Eleven states: Iowa, New Mexico, North Dakota, Maine, Nevada, Hawaii, Minnesota, Kansas, Alaska, Wyoming, Colorado and the District of Columbia use caucuses, for one or more political parties.
The primary and caucus season in Presidential elections lasts from the Iowa caucus in January to the last primaries in June. Front-loading - when larger numbers of contests take place in the opening weeks of the season—can have an effect on the nomination process, potentially reducing the number of realistic candidates, as fund-raisers and donors quickly abandon those they see as untenable. However, it is not the case that the successful candidate is always the candidate that does the best in the early primaries. There is also a period dubbed the "invisible primary" that takes place before the primary season, when candidates attempt to solicit media coverage and funding well before the real primary season begins.
A state's presidential primary election or caucus usually is an indirect election: instead of voters directly selecting a particular person running for President, it determines how many delegates each party's national political convention will receive from their respective state. These delegates then in turn select their party's presidential nominee. Held in the summer, a political convention's purpose is also to adopt a statement of the party's principles and goals known as the platform and adopt the rules for the party's activities.
The day on which primaries are held for congressional seats, and state and local offices may also vary between states. The only federally mandated day for elections is Election Day for the general elections of the President and Congress; all other elections are at the discretion of the individual state and local governments.
Election information on the web[edit]
In most states of the U.S., the chief election officer is the Secretary of state. In some states, local officials like a county Registrar of Voters or Supervisor of Elections manages the conduct of elections under the supervision of (or in coordination with) the chief election officer of the state. Many of these state and county offices have web sites that provide information to help voters obtain information on their polling places for each election, the various districts to which they belong (e.g., house and senate districts in the state and federal legislature, school boards, water districts, municipalities, etc.), as well as dates of elections and deadlines to file to run or register to vote. Some allow voters to download a sample ballot in advance of the election.
Beyond this, various media outlets provide information they think will interest their audience.
More systematic coverage is provided by web sites devoted specifically to collecting election information and making it available to the public. Two of the better known such sites are Ballotpedia and Vote Smart. These are run by non-profit, non-partisan organizations. They have paid staffs and are much more tightly controlled than Wikipedia.
USElections.com[23] tries to provide similar information but relies on volunteers in a way that is more like Wikipedia than Ballotpedia and Vote Smart.
The website 270towin provides actual electoral college maps (both current and historic) but also the ability to use an interactive map in order to make election predictions. Ongoing election news is reported as well as data on Senate and House races.[24]
The Center for Responsive Politics (opensecrets.org) and the National Institute on Money in State Politics (followthemoney.org) also provide useful election information focusing especially on campaign finance.
Hurdles[edit]
See also: Voter suppression in the United States and Gerrymandering in the United States
In 2014 scientists from Princeton University did a study on the influence of the "elite", and their derived power from special interest lobbying, versus the "ordinary" US citizen within the US political system. They found that the US was looking more like an oligarchy than a real representative democracy; thus eroding a government of the people, by the people, for the people as stated by Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address. In fact, the study found that average citizens had an almost nonexistent influence on public policies and that the ordinary citizen had little or no independent influence on policy at all.[25]
There were many US presidential elections in which foreign countries manipulate the voters.[26] Electoral College is criticised for being un-democratic (it can choose candidate who did not win the popular vote) and for focusing campaigns only on swing states.[27]
See also[edit]
United States presidential election
List of elections in the United States
Election Assistance Commission
Electoral calendar
Electoral system
Electronic voting by country § United States
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on March 31, 2015. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
Jump up ^ "Elections & Voting". Whitehouse.gov. April 2, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
Jump up ^ Gonchar, Michael. "Should Felons Be Allowed to Vote After They Have Served Their Time?". Learning.blogs.nytimes.com. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
Jump up ^ "Felony Disenfranchisement in the United States" (PDF). The Sentencing Project. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 31, 2009. Retrieved 2007-01-10.
Jump up ^ DeFalco, Beth (2007-01-09). "New Jersey to take 'idiots,' 'insane' out of state constitution?". Delaware News-Journal.
Jump up ^ [1] Archived October 5, 2006, at the Library of Congress
Jump up ^ "Voter Registration Resources". Project Vote Smart. Archived from the original on October 30, 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
Jump up ^ Permanent Absentee Voting in California, via sos.ca.gov
Jump up ^ Washington State section of Absentee Ballot
Jump up ^ "Voting by Absentee Ballot in Washington state". Secretary of State of Washington.
Jump up ^ "Federal Voting Assistance Program questions and answers". Fvap.gov. Archived from the original on March 22, 2010. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
Jump up ^ "FVAP Integrated Voting Alternative Site (IVAS)". Fvap.gov. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
Jump up ^ "MAIL (ABSENTEE) BALLOT VOTING". Clark County, Nevada. Retrieved 2008-08-08.
Jump up ^ "Absentee and Early Voting". National Conference of State Legislatures. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
Jump up ^ Nelson, Libby (2016-11-08). ""I Voted" stickers, explained". Vox. Vox Media, Inc. Retrieved 2016-11-10.
Jump up ^ Statistics on the State of the Nation Before the Presidential Elections (2007 and 2011), Pew Research Center, 2011.
Jump up ^ U.S. Elections 2012, The Economist, 2012
Jump up ^ In Federalist Papers No. 9 and No. 10, Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, respectively, wrote specifically about the dangers of domestic political factions.
Jump up ^ Baker, Peter; VandeHei, Jim (2006-11-08). "A Voter Rebuke For Bush, the War And the Right". Washington Post. Retrieved 2010-05-26. Bush and senior adviser Karl Rove tried to replicate that strategy this fall, hoping to keep the election from becoming a referendum on the president's leadership.
Jump up ^ "Election '98 Lewinsky factor never materialized". CNN. 1998-11-04. Americans shunned the opportunity to turn Tuesday's midterm elections into a referendum on President Bill Clinton's behavior, dashing Republican hopes of gaining seats in the House and Senate.
Jump up ^ See Anthony Gierzynski, Saving American Elections: A Diagnosis and Prescription for a Healthier Democracy (Cambria Press, 2011)
Jump up ^ See Anthony Gierzynski, Saving American Elections: A Diagnosis and Prescription for a Healthier Democracy (Cambria Press, 2011)
Jump up ^ Cohen, Jeff. "US Elections". USElections.com. Retrieved 2016-06-12.
Jump up ^ "2016 Presidential Election Interactive Map". 270toWin.com. Retrieved 2016-12-11.
Jump up ^ Gilens, Martin; Page, Benjamin I. (2014-09-01). "Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens". Perspectives on Politics. 12 (03): 564–581. doi:10.1017/S1537592714001595. ISSN 1541-0986.
Jump up ^ "Foreign Governments Have Been Tampering With U.S. Elections for Decades". Politico.com. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
Jump up ^ "Why the Electoral College is the absolute worst, explained". Vox.com. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Elections in the United States.
Electoral Compass
USA Election Candidate Videos
Campaign Law
USA Elections
FairVote.org
Long Distance Voter - Non-partisan resource for registering to vote or getting an absentee ballot.
Federal election results 1920-2010, US House Office of the Clerk
A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787-1824 For Votes cast in Federal, State and Local elections in the Early Republic.
U.S. Election Statistics: A Resource Guide from the Library of Congress
Election Statistics
[show]
U.S. elections navigation boxes
[hide]
Elections by type
[show]
v
t
e
United States elections
1789
1790
1791
1792
1793
1794
1795
1796
1797
1798
1799
1800
1801
1802
1803
1804
1805
1806
1807
1808
1809
1810
1811
1812
1813
1814
1815
1816
1817
1818
1819
1820
1821
1822
1823
1824
1825
1826
1827
1828
1829
1830
1831
1832
1833
1834
1835
1836
1837
1838
1839
1840
1841
1842
1843
1844
1845
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
1856
1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1863
1864
1865
1866
1867
1868
1869
1870
1871
1872
1873
1874
1875
1876
1877
1878
1879
1880
1881
1882
1883
1884
1885
1886
1887
1888
1889
1890
1891
1892
1893
1894
1895
1896
1897
1898
1899
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
1909
1910
1911
1912
1913
1914
1915
1916
1917
1918
1919
1920
1921
1922
1923
1924
1925
1926
1927
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
See also
Presidential elections
Senate elections
House elections
Gubernatorial elections
[show]
v
t
e
United States presidential elections
Elections by year
1788–89
1792
1796
1800
1804
1808
1812
1816
1820
1824
1828
1832
1836
1840
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
Elections by state
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
Washington, D.C.
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Primaries and caucuses
Iowa caucuses
New Hampshire primary
South Carolina primary
Super Tuesday
Nominating conventions
Brokered convention
Convention bounce
Superdelegate
Electoral College
and Popular vote
Results
Summary
Elections in which the winner lost the popular vote
Electoral College margins
Electoral College results by state
Electoral vote changes between elections
Electoral vote recipients
Popular vote margins
Contingent election
Faithless elector
Unpledged elector
Voter turnout
Related topics
Campaign slogans
Historical election polling
Election Day
Major party tickets
Major party losers
Presidential debates
October surprise
Red states and blue states
Swing state
Election recount
House elections
Senate elections
Gubernatorial elections
[show]
v
t
e
United States House of Representatives elections
Years
1788/89
1790
1792
1794
1796
1798
1800
1802
1804
1806
1808
1810
1812
1814
1816
1818
1820
1822
1824
1826
1828
1830
1832
1834
1836
1838
1840
1842
1844
1846
1848
1850
1852
1854
1856
1858/59
1860
1862
1864
1866
1868
1870/71
1872
1874
1876
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
Special
1801
1917
1973
1989
1991
2001
110th Congress
111th Congress
All
Senate elections
Presidential elections
Gubernatorial elections
[show]
v
t
e
United States Senate elections
Multiple-date
elections
1788/89
1790/91
1792/93
1794/95
1796/97
1798/99
1800/01
1802/03
1804/05
1806/07
1808/09
1810/11
1812/13
1814/15
1816/17
1818/19
1820/21
1822/23
1824/25
1826/27
1828/29
1830/31
1832/33
1834/35
1836/37
1838/39
1840/41
1842/43
1844/45
1846/47
1848/49
1850/51
1852/53
1854/55
1856/57
1858/59
1860/61
1862/63
1864/65
1866/67
1868/69
1870/71
1872/73
1874/75
1876/77
1878/79
1880/81
1882/83
1884/85
1886/87
1888/89
1890/91
1892/93
1894/95
1896/97
1898/99
1900/01
1902/03
1904/05
1906/07
1908/09
1910/11
1912/13
Single-date
elections
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
Special elections
Election disputes
Results by state
List of elections in the United States
House elections
Presidential elections
Gubernatorial elections
[show]
v
t
e
United States gubernatorial elections
List of current Governors
1913
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
House elections
Senate elections
Presidential elections
[show]
v
t
e
United States presidential primaries and caucuses
Election timelines
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
National polling
Democratic Party
2008
2016
2020
Republican Party
2008
2012
2016
State polling
Democratic Party
2008
2016
2020
Republican Party
2008
2012
2016
Fundraising
2008
2012
2020
Debates and forums
Democratic Party
2008
2016
2020
Republican Party
2008
2012
2016
Libertarian Party
2016
Green Party
2016
Straw polls
Conservative Political Action Conference
(Defunct: Iowa
Texas)
Major events
Iowa caucuses
New Hampshire primary
South Carolina primary
Super Tuesday
Caucuses
and primaries
Democratic Party
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
Republican Party
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
Libertarian Party
2016
2020
Green Party
2008
2012
2016
Constitution Party
2016
Results breakdown
List of candidates by number of primary votes
Democratic Party
2008
2016
Republican Party
2008
2012
2016
National
conventions
Democratic Party
1832
1835
1840
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
Republican Party
Whig Party
1839
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
Libertarian Party
1983
1987
1991
1996
2000
2004
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
Green Party
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
Reforms
California Democratic Party v. Jones
Graduated Random Presidential Primary System
Delaware Plan
Rotating Regional Primary System
Interregional Primary Plan
National Primary
[hide]
Elections by state
[show]
v
t
e
Elections in the United States by state
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
[hide]
Related topics
[show]
v
t
e
Elections in North America
Sovereign states
Antigua and Barbuda
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Canada
Costa Rica
Cuba
Dominica
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
Grenada
Guatemala
Haiti
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Trinidad and Tobago
United States
Dependencies and
other territories
Anguilla
Aruba
Bermuda
Bonaire
British Virgin Islands
Cayman Islands
Curaçao
Greenland
Guadeloupe
Martinique
Montserrat
Puerto Rico
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Martin
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Saba
Sint Eustatius
Sint Maarten
Turks and Caicos Islands
United States Virgin Islands
[show]
v
t
e
United States articles
History
By event
Timeline of U.S. history
Pre-Columbian era
Colonial era
Thirteen Colonies
military history
Continental Congress
American Revolution
War
American frontier
Confederation Period
Drafting and ratification of Constitution
Federalist Era
War of 1812
Territorial acquisitions
Territorial evolution
Mexican–American War
Civil War
Reconstruction Era
Indian Wars
Gilded Age
Progressive Era
African-American civil rights movement 1865–1896 / 1896–1954 / 1954–1968
Spanish–American War
Imperialism
World War I
Roaring Twenties
Great Depression
World War II
home front
Nazism in the United States
American Century
Cold War
Korean War
Space Race
Feminist Movement
Vietnam War
Post-Cold War (1991–2008)
War on Terror
War in Afghanistan
Iraq War
Recent events (2008–present)
By topic
Outline of U.S. history
Demographic
Discoveries
Economic
debt ceiling
Inventions
before 1890
1890–1945
1946–91
after 1991
Military
Postal
Technological and industrial
Geography
Territory
counties
federal district
federal enclaves
Indian reservations
insular zones
minor outlying islands
populated places
states
Earthquakes
Extreme points
Islands
Mountains
peaks
ranges
Appalachian
Rocky
National Park Service
National Parks
Regions
East Coast
West Coast
Great Plains
Gulf
Mid-Atlantic
Midwestern
New England
Pacific
Central
Eastern
Northern
Northeastern
Northwestern
Southern
Southeastern
Southwestern
Western
Rivers
Colorado
Columbia
Mississippi
Missouri
Ohio
Rio Grande
Yukon
Time
Water supply and sanitation
Politics
Federal
Executive
Cabinet
Civil service
Executive departments
Executive Office
Independent agencies
Law enforcement
President of the United States
Public policy
Legislative
House of Representatives
current members
Speaker
Senate
current members
President pro tempore
Vice President
Judicial
Courts of appeals
District courts
Supreme Court
Law
Bill of Rights
civil liberties
Code of Federal Regulations
Constitution
federalism
preemption
separation of powers
Federal Reporter
United States Code
United States Reports
Intelligence
Central Intelligence Agency
Defense Intelligence Agency
Federal Bureau of Investigation
National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
National Reconnaissance Office
National Security Agency
Office of the Director of National Intelligence
Uniformed
Armed Forces
Army
Marine Corps
Navy
Air Force
Coast Guard
National Guard
NOAA Corps
Public Health Service Corps
51st state
political status of Puerto Rico
District of Columbia statehood movement
Elections
Electoral College
Foreign relations
Foreign policy
Hawaiian sovereignty movement
Ideologies
anti-Americanism
exceptionalism
nationalism
Local government
Parties
Democratic
Republican
Third parties
Red states and blue states
Purple America
Scandals
State government
governor
state legislature
state court
Uncle Sam
Economy
By sector
Agriculture
Banking
Communications
Energy
Insurance
Manufacturing
Mining
Tourism
Trade
Transportation
Companies
by state
Currency
Exports
Federal budget
Federal Reserve System
Financial position
Labor unions
Public debt
Social welfare programs
Taxation
Unemployment
Wall Street
Society
Culture
Americana
Architecture
Cinema
Cuisine
Dance
Demography
Education
Family structure
Fashion
Flag
Folklore
Languages
American English
Indigenous languages
ASL
Black American Sign Language
HSL
Plains Sign Talk
Arabic
Chinese
French
German
Italian
Russian
Spanish
Literature
Media
Journalism
Internet
Newspapers
Radio
Television
Music
Names
People
Philosophy
Public holidays
Religion
Sexuality
Sports
Theater
Visual art
Social class
Affluence
American Dream
Educational attainment
Homelessness
Home-ownership
Household income
Income inequality
Middle class
Personal income
Poverty
Professional and working class conflict
Standard of living
Wealth
Issues
Ages of consent
Capital punishment
Crime
incarceration
Criticism of government
Discrimination
affirmative action
antisemitism
intersex rights
islamophobia
LGBT rights
racism
same-sex marriage
Drug policy
Energy policy
Environmental movement
Gun politics
Health care
abortion
health insurance
hunger
obesity
smoking
Human rights
Immigration
illegal
International rankings
National security
Mass surveillance
Terrorism
Separation of church and state
Outline
Index
Book
Category
Portal
[show]
v
t
e
Voting rights in the United States
Constitutional
provisions
Article I
Voter Qualifications Clause
Elections Clause
1st Amendment
14th Amendment
Equal Protection Clause
15th Amendment
17th Amendment
19th Amendment
23rd Amendment
24th Amendment
26th Amendment
Federal laws
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Amendments
List of covered jurisdictions
Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act
Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act
Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act
National Voter Registration Act of 1993
Help America Vote Act of 2002
State laws
Voter access
Absentee ballot
Early voting
Postal voting
Provisional ballot
Voter registration in the U.S.
Initiatives and referendums
Recall election
Vote denial
Electoral fraud
Grandfather clause
Literacy test
Poll tax
Voter caging
Voter ID laws
Vote dilution
Gerrymandering
Plurality-at-large voting
One man, one vote
By group
Women
Youth
Felons
Foreigners
Transgender people
District of Columbia residents
Puerto Rico residents
Guam residents
History
Timeline
Disenfranchisement after the Reconstruction Era
Selma to Montgomery marches
Timeline of women's suffrage
Woman Suffrage Parade of 1913
Silent Sentinels
U.S. suffragists
publications
History of direct democracy
Related
Ballot access
Campaign finance
Citizenship
Disfranchisement
Election
Election law
Elections
Electoral reform
Electoral College
Redistricting
Secret ballot
Suffrage
Voting
Voting system
Voter registration
National Voting Rights Museum
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Elections_in_the_United_States&oldid=837216240"
Categories:
Elections in the United States
Voting in the United States
Hidden categories:
Webarchive template other archives
Use American English from April 2015
All Wikipedia articles written in American English
Use mdy dates from April 2015
All articles with unsourced statements
Articles with unsourced statements from December 2014
Articles with unsourced statements from April 2009
Navigation menu
Personal tools
Not logged in
Talk
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Namespaces
Article
Talk
Variants
Views
Read
Edit
View history
More
Search
Navigation
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Wikipedia store
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Wikidata item
Cite this page
Print/export
Create a book
Download as PDF
Printable version
In other projects
Wikimedia Commons
Languages
Azərbaycanca
Català
Čeština
Deutsch
Español
فارسی
Bahasa Indonesia
Íslenska
Bahasa Melayu
日本語
Occitan
Português
Русский
Українська
中文
6 more
Edit links
This page was last edited on 19 April 2018, at 12:58.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Contact Wikipedia
Developers
Cookie statement
Mobile view
Enable previews

values: mw-page-base noprint

values: mw-head-base noprint

values: firstHeading firstHeading en

values: siteSub noprint

values: jump-to-nav mw-jump

values:
note
hatnote navigation-not-searchable

attrs: href class

values: Greater coat of arms of the United States.svg

values: font-size: 105%; padding: 0.2em 0px 0.4em; text-align: center; display: none;

values: United States House of Representatives 194-1-240.svg

values: Seal of the United States House of Representatives.svg

values: Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

values: Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives

values: List of United States congressional districts

values: President pro tempore of the United States Senate

values: Party leaders of the United States Senate

values: Seal of the President of the United States.svg

values: Seal of the Vice President of the United States.svg

values: List of federal agencies in the United States

values:
/wiki/Executive_Office_of_the_President
mw-redirect
Executive Office of the President

values: Seal of the United States Supreme Court.svg

values: List of United States district and territorial courts

values: List of United States state legislatures

values: padding:0.3em 0.4em 0.3em;font-weight:bold;border-top: 1px solid #aaa; border-bottom: 1px solid #aaa;

values: Template talk:Politics of the United States

values: float:right;clear:right;width:22.0em;margin:0 0 1.0em 1.0em;background:#f9f9f9;border:1px solid #aaa;padding:0.2em;border-spacing:0.4em 0;text-align:center;line-height:1.4em;font-size:88%

values:
/wiki/Federal_Elections_Commission
mw-redirect
Federal Elections Commission

values: This claim needs references to reliable sources. (December 2014)

values:
noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact
white-space:nowrap;

values: Instant-runoff voting in the United States

values: Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: List of political parties in the United States

values: Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act

values: An "I voted" sticker given to Boston voters in 2016.

values:
/wiki/Midterm_elections
mw-redirect
Midterm elections

values:
/wiki/Electoral_vote
mw-redirect
Electoral vote

values: Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution

values:
/wiki/District_of_Columbia
mw-redirect
District of Columbia

values: Template:United States presidential elections

values: Template talk:United States presidential elections

values: United States presidential election, 1788–89

values: United States presidential election, 1792

values: United States presidential election, 1796

values: United States presidential election, 1800

values: United States presidential election, 1804

values: United States presidential election, 1808

values: United States presidential election, 1812

values: United States presidential election, 1816

values: United States presidential election, 1820

values: United States presidential election, 1824

values: United States presidential election, 1828

values: United States presidential election, 1832

values: United States presidential election, 1836

values: United States presidential election, 1840

values: United States presidential election, 1844

values: United States presidential election, 1848

values: United States presidential election, 1852

values: United States presidential election, 1856

values: United States presidential election, 1860

values: United States presidential election, 1864

values: United States presidential election, 1868

values: United States presidential election, 1872

values: United States presidential election, 1876

values: United States presidential election, 1880

values: United States presidential election, 1884

values: United States presidential election, 1888

values: United States presidential election, 1892

values: United States presidential election, 1896

values: United States presidential election, 1900

values: United States presidential election, 1904

values: United States presidential election, 1908

values: United States presidential election, 1912

values: United States presidential election, 1916

values: United States presidential election, 1920

values: United States presidential election, 1924

values: United States presidential election, 1928

values: United States presidential election, 1932

values: United States presidential election, 1936

values: United States presidential election, 1940

values: United States presidential election, 1944

values: United States presidential election, 1948

values: United States presidential election, 1952

values: United States presidential election, 1956

values: United States presidential election, 1960

values: United States presidential election, 1964

values: United States presidential election, 1968

values: United States presidential election, 1972

values: United States presidential election, 1976

values: United States presidential election, 1980

values: United States presidential election, 1984

values: United States presidential election, 1988

values: United States presidential election, 1992

values: United States presidential election, 1996

values: United States presidential election, 2000

values: United States presidential election, 2004

values: United States presidential election, 2008

values: United States presidential election, 2012

values: United States presidential election, 2016

values: United States presidential election, 2020

values: United States presidential elections in Alabama

values: United States presidential elections in Alaska

values: United States presidential elections in Arizona

values: United States presidential elections in Arkansas

values: United States presidential elections in California

values: United States presidential elections in Colorado

values: United States presidential elections in Connecticut

values: United States presidential elections in Delaware

values: United States presidential elections in Florida

values: United States presidential elections in Georgia

values: United States presidential elections in Hawaii

values: United States presidential elections in Idaho

values: United States presidential elections in Illinois

values: United States presidential elections in Indiana

values: United States presidential elections in Iowa

values: United States presidential elections in Kansas

values: United States presidential elections in Kentucky

values: United States presidential elections in Louisiana

values: United States presidential elections in Maine

values: United States presidential elections in Maryland

values: United States presidential elections in Massachusetts

values: United States presidential elections in Michigan

values: United States presidential elections in Minnesota

values: United States presidential elections in Mississippi

values: United States presidential elections in Missouri

values: United States presidential elections in Montana

values: United States presidential elections in Nebraska

values: United States presidential elections in Nevada

values: United States presidential elections in New Hampshire

values: United States presidential elections in New Jersey

values: United States presidential elections in New Mexico

values: United States presidential elections in New York

values: United States presidential elections in North Carolina

values: United States presidential elections in North Dakota

values: United States presidential elections in Ohio

values: United States presidential elections in Oklahoma

values: United States presidential elections in Oregon

values: List of United States presidential elections in Pennsylvania

values: United States presidential elections in Rhode Island

values: United States presidential elections in South Carolina

values: United States presidential elections in South Dakota

values: United States presidential elections in Tennessee

values: United States presidential elections in Texas

values: United States presidential elections in Utah

values: United States presidential elections in Vermont

values: United States presidential elections in Virginia

values: United States presidential elections in Washington

values: United States presidential elections in Washington, D.C.

values: United States presidential elections in West Virginia

values: United States presidential elections in Wisconsin

values: United States presidential elections in Wyoming

values: United States presidential nominating convention

values: United States presidential election summary

values: United States presidential elections in which the winner lost the popular vote

values: List of United States presidential elections by Electoral College margin

values: List of United States presidential election results by state

values: Electoral vote changes between United States presidential elections

values: List of people who received an electoral vote in the United States Electoral College

values: List of United States presidential elections by popular vote margin

values: Voter turnout in the United States presidential elections

values: List of U.S. presidential campaign slogans

values: Historical polling for U.S. Presidential elections

values: List of United States major party presidential tickets

values: List of unsuccessful major party candidates for President of the United States

values: Template:United States House of Representatives elections

values: Template:United States gubernatorial elections

values: nowraplinks hlist collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner

values: Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: Template talk:United States Senate elections

values: United States Senate elections, 1788 and 1789

values: United States Senate elections, 1790 and 1791

values: United States Senate elections, 1792 and 1793

values: United States Senate elections, 1794 and 1795

values: United States Senate elections, 1796 and 1797

values: United States Senate elections, 1798 and 1799

values: United States Senate elections, 1800 and 1801

values: United States Senate elections, 1802 and 1803

values: United States Senate elections, 1804 and 1805

values: United States Senate elections, 1806 and 1807

values: United States Senate elections, 1808 and 1809

values: United States Senate elections, 1810 and 1811

values: United States Senate elections, 1812 and 1813

values: United States Senate elections, 1814 and 1815

values: United States Senate elections, 1816 and 1817

values: United States Senate elections, 1818 and 1819

values: United States Senate elections, 1820 and 1821

values: United States Senate elections, 1822 and 1823

values: United States Senate elections, 1824 and 1825

values: United States Senate elections, 1826 and 1827

values: United States Senate elections, 1828 and 1829

values: United States Senate elections, 1830 and 1831

values: United States Senate elections, 1832 and 1833

values: United States Senate elections, 1834 and 1835

values: United States Senate elections, 1836 and 1837

values: United States Senate elections, 1838 and 1839

values: United States Senate elections, 1840 and 1841

values: United States Senate elections, 1842 and 1843

values: United States Senate elections, 1844 and 1845

values: United States Senate elections, 1846 and 1847

values: United States Senate elections, 1848 and 1849

values: United States Senate elections, 1850 and 1851

values: United States Senate elections, 1852 and 1853

values: United States Senate elections, 1854 and 1855

values: United States Senate elections, 1856 and 1857

values: United States Senate elections, 1858 and 1859

values: United States Senate elections, 1860 and 1861

values: United States Senate elections, 1862 and 1863

values: United States Senate elections, 1864 and 1865

values: United States Senate elections, 1866 and 1867

values: United States Senate elections, 1868 and 1869

values: United States Senate elections, 1870 and 1871

values: United States Senate elections, 1872 and 1873

values: United States Senate elections, 1874 and 1875

values: United States Senate elections, 1876 and 1877

values: United States Senate elections, 1878 and 1879

values: United States Senate elections, 1880 and 1881

values: United States Senate elections, 1882 and 1883

values: United States Senate elections, 1884 and 1885

values: United States Senate elections, 1886 and 1887

values: United States Senate elections, 1888 and 1889

values: United States Senate elections, 1890 and 1891

values: United States Senate elections, 1892 and 1893

values: United States Senate elections, 1894 and 1895

values: United States Senate elections, 1896 and 1897

values: United States Senate elections, 1898 and 1899

values: United States Senate elections, 1900 and 1901

values: United States Senate elections, 1902 and 1903

values: United States Senate elections, 1904 and 1905

values: United States Senate elections, 1906 and 1907

values: United States Senate elections, 1908 and 1909

values: United States Senate elections, 1910 and 1911

values: United States Senate elections, 1912 and 1913

values: List of special elections to the United States Senate

values: List of United States Senate election disputes

values: List of United States Senate election results by state

values: Edit section: House of Representatives elections

values:
/wiki/Delegate_(United_States_Congress)
mw-redirect
Delegate (United States Congress)

values:
/wiki/U.S._presidential_election
mw-redirect
U.S. presidential election

values: This claim needs references to reliable sources. (April 2009)

values: Template talk:United States House of Representatives elections

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1788 and 1789

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1790

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1792

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1794

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1796

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1798

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1800

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1802

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1804

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1806

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1808

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1810

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1812

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1814

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1816

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1818

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1820

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1822

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1824

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1826

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1828

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1830

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1832

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1834

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1836

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1838

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1840

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1842

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1844

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1846

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1848

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1850

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1852

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1854

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1856

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1858 and 1859

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1860

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1862

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1864

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1866

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1868

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1870 and 1871

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1872

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1874

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1876

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1878

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1880

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1882

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1884

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1886

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1888

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1890

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1892

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1894

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1896

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1898

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1900

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1902

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1904

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1906

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1908

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1910

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1912

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1914

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1916

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1918

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1920

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1922

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1924

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1926

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1928

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1930

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1932

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1934

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1936

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1938

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1940

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1942

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1944

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1946

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1948

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1950

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1952

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1954

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1956

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1958

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1960

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1962

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1964

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1966

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1968

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1970

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1972

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1974

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1976

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1978

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1980

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1982

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1984

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1986

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1988

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1990

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1992

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1994

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1996

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1998

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2000

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2002

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2004

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2006

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2008

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2010

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2012

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2014

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2016

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2018

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1801

values: United States House of Representatives special elections, 1917

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1973

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1989

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 1991

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2001

values: Special elections to the 110th United States Congress

values: Special elections to the 111th United States Congress

values: List of special elections to the United States House of Representatives

values: Electoral cycle approach (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/State_Attorney_General
mw-redirect
State Attorney General

values:
/wiki/State_Secretary_of_State
mw-redirect
State Secretary of State

values:
/wiki/Off-year_elections
mw-redirect
Off-year elections

values: Template talk:United States gubernatorial elections

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1913

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1928

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1929

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1930

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1931

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1932

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1933

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1934

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1935

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1936

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1937

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1938

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1939

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1940

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1941

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1942

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1943

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1944

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1945

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1946

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1947

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1948

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1949

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1950

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1951

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1952

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1953

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1954

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1955

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1956

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1957

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1958

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1959

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1960

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1961

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1962

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1963

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1964

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1965

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1966

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1967

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1968

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1969

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1970

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1971

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1972

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1973

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1974

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1975

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1976

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1977

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1978

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1979

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1980

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1981

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1982

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1983

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1984

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1985

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1986

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1987

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1988

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1989

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1990

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1991

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1992

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1993

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1994

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1995

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1996

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1997

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1998

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 1999

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2000

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2001

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2002

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2003

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2004

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2005

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2006

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2007

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2008

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2009

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2010

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2011

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2012

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2013

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2014

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2015

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2016

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2017

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2018

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2019

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2020

values: United States gubernatorial elections, 2021 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/Counties_of_the_United_States
mw-redirect
Counties of the United States

values: Edit section: Comparison of recent and upcoming election years

values: United States House of Representatives elections, 2020

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_American_Samoa
mw-redirect
Governor of American Samoa

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Delaware
mw-redirect
Governor of Delaware

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Missouri
mw-redirect
Governor of Missouri

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Montana
mw-redirect
Governor of Montana

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Utah
mw-redirect
Governor of Utah

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Washington
mw-redirect
Governor of Washington

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_West_Virginia
mw-redirect
Governor of West Virginia

values: background: #DDFBFF; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Alabama
mw-redirect
Governor of Alabama

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Alaska
mw-redirect
Governor of Alaska

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Arizona
mw-redirect
Governor of Arizona

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Arkansas
mw-redirect
Governor of Arkansas

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Connecticut
mw-redirect
Governor of Connecticut

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Florida
mw-redirect
Governor of Florida

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Georgia
mw-redirect
Governor of Georgia

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Guam
mw-redirect
Governor of Guam

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Idaho
mw-redirect
Governor of Idaho

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Kansas
mw-redirect
Governor of Kansas

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Nevada
mw-redirect
Governor of Nevada

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Ohio
mw-redirect
Governor of Ohio

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Pennsylvania
mw-redirect
Governor of Pennsylvania

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Rhode_Island
mw-redirect
Governor of Rhode Island

values: Governor of United States Virgin Islands

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Wyoming
mw-redirect
Governor of Wyoming

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Louisiana
mw-redirect
Governor of Louisiana

values:
/wiki/Governor_of_Mississippi
mw-redirect
Governor of Mississippi

values: font-size:95%; width:100%; margin:0 auto 15px; text-align:center;

values: Non-voting members of the United States House of Representatives

values: Edit section: Features of the election system

values:
/wiki/Washington%27s_Farewell_Address
mw-redirect
Washington's Farewell Address

values:
/wiki/Primary_elections
mw-redirect
Primary elections

values:
/wiki/Free_speech
mw-redirect
Free speech

values: First Amendment to the United States Constitution

values:
/wiki/U.S._Virgin_Islands
mw-redirect
U.S. Virgin Islands

values:
/wiki/United_States_Supreme_Court
mw-redirect
United States Supreme Court

values:
/wiki/Iowa_caucus
mw-redirect
Iowa caucus

values: Edit section: Election information on the web

values: Secretary of state (U.S. state government)

values:
/wiki/Project_Vote_Smart
mw-redirect
Project Vote Smart

values: National Institute on Money in State Politics

values:
/wiki/Electoral_calendar
mw-redirect
Electoral calendar

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.fvap.gov/faq.html

values:
nofollow
http://uselections.com/
external text

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.270towin.com

values:
nofollow
external text
//www.worldcat.org/issn/1541-0986

values: commons:Category:Elections in the United States

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.electoralcompass.com

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.electionspeak.com

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.uselections.com

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.fairvote.org

values:
nofollow
external text
http://www.longdistancevoter.org

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections
mw-redirect
United States elections

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1791
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1791

values: United States elections, 1793 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1795 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1797 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1799 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1801 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1803 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1805 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1807 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1809 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1811
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1811

values: United States elections, 1813 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1815 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1817 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1819 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1821 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1823 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1825 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1827 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1829 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1831 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1833
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1833

values: United States elections, 1835 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1837 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1839 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1841 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1843 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1845 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1847 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1849 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1851 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1853 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1855
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1855

values: United States elections, 1857 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1859 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1861 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1863 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1865 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1867 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1869 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1871 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1873 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1875 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1877
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1877

values: United States elections, 1879 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1881 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1883 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1885 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1887 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1889 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1891 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1893 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1895 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1897 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1899
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1899

values: United States elections, 1901 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1903 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1905 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1907 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1909 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1911 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1913 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1915 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1917 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1919 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1921
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1921

values: United States elections, 1923 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1925 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1927 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1929 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1931 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1933 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1935 (page does not exist)

values: United states elections, 1937 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1939 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1941 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1943
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1943

values: United States elections, 1945 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1947 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1949 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1951 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1953 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1955 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1957 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1959 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1961 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1963 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1965
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1965

values: United States elections, 1967 (page does not exist)

values: United States elections, 1969 (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1971
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1971

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1973
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1973

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1975
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1975

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1977
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1977

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1979
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1979

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1981
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1981

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1983
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1983

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1985
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1985

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1987
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1987

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1989
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1989

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1991
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1991

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1993
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1993

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1995
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1995

values:
/wiki/United_States_elections,_1997
mw-redirect
United States elections, 1997

values: United States elections, 2021 (page does not exist)

values: Template talk:U.S. presidential primaries

values: United States presidential election, 2004 timeline

values: United States presidential election, 2008 timeline

values: United States presidential election, 2012 timeline

values: United States presidential election, 2016 timeline

values: United States presidential election, 2020 timeline

values: Nationwide opinion polling for the Democratic Party 2008 presidential candidates

values: Nationwide opinion polling for the Democratic Party 2016 presidential primaries

values: Nationwide opinion polling for the Democratic Party 2020 presidential primaries (page does not exist)

values: Nationwide opinion polling for the Republican Party 2008 presidential candidates

values: Nationwide opinion polling for the Republican Party 2012 presidential primaries

values: Nationwide opinion polling for the Republican Party 2016 presidential primaries

values: Statewide opinion polling for the Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2008

values: Statewide opinion polling for the Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Statewide opinion polling for the Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2020 (page does not exist)

values: Statewide opinion polling for the Republican Party presidential primaries, 2008

values: Statewide opinion polling for the Republican Party presidential primaries, 2012

values: Statewide opinion polling for the Republican Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Fundraising for the 2008 United States presidential election

values: Fundraising for the 2012 United States presidential election

values: Fundraising for the 2020 United States presidential election (page does not exist)

values: Democratic Party presidential debates, 2008

values: Democratic Party presidential debates and forums, 2016

values: Democratic Party presidential debates and forums, 2020 (page does not exist)

values: Republican Party presidential debates, 2008

values: Republican Party presidential debates, 2012

values: Republican Party presidential debates and forums, 2016

values: Libertarian Party presidential debates and forums, 2016

values: Green Party presidential debates and forums, 2016

values: Conservative Political Action Conference

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1912

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1916

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1920

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1924

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1928

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1932

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1936

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1940

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1944

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1948

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1952

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1956

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1960

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1964

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1968

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1972

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1976

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1980

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1984

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1988

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1992

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1996

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2000

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2004

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2008

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2012

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2020

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1912

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1916

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1920

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1924

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1928

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1932

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1936

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1940

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1944

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1948

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1952

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1956

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1960

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1964

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1968

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1972

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1976

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1980

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1984

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1988

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1992

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 1996

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 2000

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 2004

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 2008

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 2012

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Republican Party presidential primaries, 2020

values: Libertarian Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Libertarian Party presidential primaries, 2020

values: Green Party presidential primaries, 2008

values: Green Party presidential primaries, 2012

values: Green Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Constitution Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: List of United States presidential candidates by number of primary votes

values: Results of the 2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries

values: Results of the Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Results of the 2008 Republican Party presidential primaries

values: Results of the 2012 Republican Party presidential primaries

values: Results of the Republican Party presidential primaries, 2016

values: Graduated Random Presidential Primary System

values:
/wiki/National_Primary
mw-redirect
National Primary

values: nowraplinks collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner

values: nowraplinks collapsible expanded navbox-inner

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_Georgia_(state)
mw-redirect
Elections in Georgia (state)

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_Kentucky
mw-redirect
Elections in Kentucky

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_Maine
mw-redirect
Elections in Maine

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_Nebraska
mw-redirect
Elections in Nebraska

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_New_Mexico
mw-redirect
Elections in New Mexico

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_New_York
mw-redirect
Elections in New York

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_Rhode_Island
mw-redirect
Elections in Rhode Island

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_South_Dakota
mw-redirect
Elections in South Dakota

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_Washington
mw-redirect
Elections in Washington

values: Elections in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

values: Elections in the Collectivity of Saint Martin

values: Elections in Sint Eustatius (page does not exist)

values: Elections in the Turks and Caicos Islands

values: Elections in the United States Virgin Islands

values: Timeline of drafting and ratification of the United States Constitution

values: Territorial evolution of the United States

values:
/wiki/Reconstruction_Era
mw-redirect
Reconstruction Era

values: African-American civil rights movement (1865–1896)

values: African-American civil rights movement (1896–1954)

values: History of the United States (1865–1918)

values: Military history of the United States during World War II

values: United States home front during World War II

values: History of the United States (1991–2008)

values: History of the United States (2008–present)

values: Demographic history of the United States

values: Timeline of United States inventions (before 1890)

values: Timeline of United States inventions (1890–1945)

values: Timeline of United States inventions (1946–91)

values: Timeline of United States inventions (after 1991)

values: Postage stamps and postal history of the United States

values: Technological and industrial history of the United States

values: Lists of populated places in the United States

values: List of earthquakes in the United States

values: List of extreme points of the United States

values: List of mountain peaks of the United States

values: List of areas in the United States National Park System

values:
/wiki/Pacific_States
mw-redirect
Pacific States

values: Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States

values: United States federal executive departments

values: Executive Office of the President of the United States

values: Independent agencies of the United States government

values: Federal law enforcement in the United States

values: Current members of the United States House of Representatives

values: Current members of the United States Senate

values: Separation of powers under the United States Constitution

values: United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps

values: Political ideologies in the United States

values: List of federal political scandals in the United States

values: List of companies of the United States by state

values: Chinese language and varieties in the United States

values: Educational attainment in the United States

values: Professional and working class conflict in the United States

values: Criticism of the United States government

values: Federal drug policy of the United States

values: Environmental movement in the United States

values: Illegal immigration to the United States

values: International rankings of the United States

values: Separation of church and state in the United States

values:
/wiki/Book:United_States
mw-redirect
Book:United States

values: nowraplinks hlist collapsible collapsed navbox-inner

values: nowraplinks collapsible collapsed navbox-inner

values: Template:Voting rights in the United States

values: Template talk:Voting rights in the United States

values: Article One of the United States Constitution

values: Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: Twenty-fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution

values: Amendments to the Voting Rights Act of 1965

values: List of jurisdictions subject to the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965

values: Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act

values: Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act

values: Initiatives and referendums in the United States

values:
/wiki/Poll_tax_(United_States)
mw-redirect
Poll tax (United States)

values: Right of foreigners to vote in the United States

values: Transgender disenfranchisement in the United States

values: Timeline of voting rights in the United States

values: Disenfranchisement after the Reconstruction Era

values: Timeline of women's suffrage in the United States

values:
/wiki/Woman_Suffrage_Parade_of_1913
mw-redirect
Woman Suffrage Parade of 1913

values: History of direct democracy in the United States

values:
/wiki/Voting_system
mw-redirect
Voting system

values: Category:Webarchive template other archives

values: Category:Use American English from April 2015

values: Category:All Wikipedia articles written in American English

values: Category:All articles with unsourced statements

values: Category:Articles with unsourced statements from December 2014

values: Category:Articles with unsourced statements from April 2009

values: Discussion about edits from this IP address [ctrl-alt-n]

values: A list of edits made from this IP address [ctrl-alt-y]

values: You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory

values: You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [ctrl-alt-o]

values:
/wiki/Elections_in_the_United_States
View the content page [ctrl-alt-c]
c

values: Discussion about the content page [ctrl-alt-t]

values: p-namespaces navigation vectorTabs p-namespaces-label

values:
p-variants
navigation
vectorMenu emptyPortlet
p-variants-label

values: Past revisions of this page [ctrl-alt-h]

values: p-views navigation vectorTabs p-views-label

values:
p-cactions
navigation
vectorMenu emptyPortlet
p-cactions-label

values:
mw-wiki-logo
/wiki/Main_Page
Visit the main page

values:
/wiki/Main_Page
Visit the main page [ctrl-alt-z]
z

values: Featured content – the best of Wikipedia

values: portal navigation p-wikibase-otherprojects p-wikibase-otherprojects-label

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-az
display: none;

values: Sistema electoral dels Estats Units d'Amèrica – Catalan

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-ca badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values: Volby ve Spojených státech amerických – Czech

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-cs
display: none;

values: Kongresswahlen in den Vereinigten Staaten – German

values: انتخابات در ایالات متحده آمریکا – Persian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-fa
display: none;

values: Pemilihan umum di Amerika Serikat – Indonesian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-is
display: none;

values: Pilihan raya di Amerika Syarikat – Malay

values: アメリカ合衆国の選挙 – Japanese

values: Sistèma electoral dels Estats Units d'America – Occitan

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-oc
display: none;

values: Eleições nos Estados Unidos – Portuguese

values: Избирательная система США – Russian

values: Виборча система США – Ukrainian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-uk
display: none;

values: All languages (initial selection from common choices by you and others)

values: /static/images/wikimedia-button-1.5x.png 1.5x, /static/images/wikimedia-button-2x.png 2x

values: /static/images/poweredby_mediawiki_132x47.png 1.5x, /static/images/poweredby_mediawiki_176x62.png 2x

values:
suggestions
display: none; font-size: 13px;

values: mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject page-Elections_in_the_United_States rootpage-Elections_in_the_United_States skin-vector action-view