1. The Road to the White House

2. Timeline: Running for the Presidency
24 months
before election
6 months
before election
12 months
before election
November election
The Decision to Run
Gathering support and
money; testing the waters;
announcing candidacies
Primaries and Caucuses
February to June
open primaries
closed primaries
caucuses
Winning Delegates
Elimination of all
candidates except one
Party Convention
July to August
formal selection of
party nominees at the
national conventions
party platform adopted
vice presidential nomination
General Stage Election
August to November
campaigning
media appearances
debates

3. Step 1: Win the Party Nomination

4. Party Caucuses Caucus - closed meeting of party members in each state
Michel Bachman campaigns in Iowa
Caucus - closed meeting of party members in each state
Delegates select the party’s choice for presidential candidate
Currently, six states hold party caucuses to select presidential nominees.

5. Presidential Primaries
Presidential Primary Elections - special elections in which voters select candidates to be the party’s nominee for president in the general election.
Primary Season: January-June of election year
State party organizations decide the rules for the primaries in a particular state

6. Closed Primary vs. Open Primary
A registered voter may vote in any party primary regardless of his or her own party affiliation
Crossover voters – voters who usually vote for one party, vote in the primary election of the other party
Examples: Michigan, Texas, Virginia, Washington
Voters may vote in a party's primary only if they are registered members of that party
Examples: California, Florida, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania

7. Methods of Selecting Presidential Delegates by State

8. 2008 Open & Closed Primaries

9. Step 2: Win the General Election
Elections between candidates of opposing parties
“The battle for the center” as candidates vie for independent, more moderate voters ?

10. Getting Elected
The system used to elect the President is called the ELECTORAL COLLEGE
Representatives from each state select the president
The winner is determined by the number of electoral college votes, NOT the popular vote
# of Electors = senators + representatives

11. So, what about the popular vote?
On election day (the first Tuesday in November), the American people vote for the candidate of their choice – this is known as the POPULAR VOTE (the vote of the people)
The popular votes are counted
In most states, the candidate who wins the most popular votes gets all the electoral votes in the state – for example, if most of the people in California vote for Candidate X, then Candidate X gets all 55 electoral votes

12. Commonly Asked Questions
Do electors actually cast their vote?
It’s usually a formality, but in December, the electors representing the candidate who won their state’s popular vote meet in their state capital and cast their votes
The results of the national election become official when the stats’ electoral ballots are counted before a joint session of Congress on January 6th
The winners are sworn in on Inauguration Day, which is always January 20th
Can one candidate win the popular vote and another win the electoral vote?
Yes, and the electoral vote determines who will be President
It happened most recently in 2000, when Al Gore won the popular vote but George W. Bush won the electoral vote and thus the White House
It’s happened only three other times: 1824, 1876, 1888

13. (or the vote goes to the House of Representatives)
270/538 needed to win
(or the vote goes to the House of Representatives)

16. “NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION!!”
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. has 3 electoral votes; however, it has no Senators or members in the House of Representatives…
Why is this strange?
Since DC has no senators and no members in the House, it should not have any electoral votes. However, since people living in the District do pay taxes and share the same responsibilities as other US citizens, they must be given the right to participate and have a voice in presidential elections.
“NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION!!”

17. Step 3: Presidential Inauguration
January 20 – Presidential inauguration