1. 7.1-The President and Vice President

2. The Office of the President
The President heads the Executive Branch and is described in Article II of the Constitution

3. The Office of the President
The US Constitution lists three rules about who can become president:
1. The person must be at least 35 years old
2. A native-born American citizen
3. A resident of the US for at least 14 years

4. Presidential Elections
Presidential elections take place every 4 years

5. Presidential Elections
The Constitution does not provide for direct popular election of the president; it set up an indirect method of election called the Electoral College

6. Presidential Elections
The Constitution says each state shall appoint electors who then vote for one of the major candidates
Washington D.C.- 3 electors casting ballots in the 2008 election

7. Presidential Elections
The Twentieth Amendment (1933) shortens the time between an election and inauguration day; moved from March 4th to January 20th

8. Electoral College System
Each state has as many electoral votes as the total of its US Senators and Representatives (Washington, DC has 3 electoral votes)
Representation by Population
Equal Representation- 2

9. Electoral College System
The Electoral College includes 538 electors; it is mostly a “winner-take-all” system; if a candidate wins the popular vote by a tiny majority, that candidate gets all the state’s electoral votes

10. Electoral College System
To be elected president a candidate must receive at least half of the 538 electoral votes, a candidate needs 270 votes to win

11. Electoral College System
If no candidate receives a majority in the electoral college the House of Representatives elects the winner
The formal election by the Electoral College doesn’t take place until December when electors meet in each state capital to cast their ballots

12. Term of Office Presidents serve 4 year terms
George Washington served two four year terms and refused to run again; many later Presidents followed his example, this is known as a precedent

13. Term of Office
No president served more than two terms until 1940, when Franklin D. Roosevelt ran for and won a third term; he won a 4th term in 1944

14. Term of Office
The 22nd Amendment (1951) limits each President to 2 elected terms in office, or a maximum of ten years if his presidency began during another president’s term

15. Salary and Benefits
The president receives a salary of $400,000 per year plus money for expenses and travel; he lives and works in the White House

16. Salary and Benefits
He also has the use of Camp David, an estate in Maryland 60 miles north of Washington, D.C.; it serves as a retreat and a place to host foreign leaders

17. Salary and Benefits
When presidents travel, they command a fleet of special cars, helicopters, and airplanes; for long trips the president uses Air Force One a specially equipped jet

18. The Vice President
The Vice President is elected with the President by the Electoral College; the qualifications are the same as those for the President

19. The Vice President
Article I states the VP shall preside over the Senate and vote in case of a tie
Since 1789, 244 tie-breaking votes have been cast.

20. The Vice President
If the president dies, is removed from office, falls seriously ill, or resigns, the Vice President becomes president

21. The Vice President
The Twelfth Amendment (1804) states that electors should cast separate ballots for President and Vice President
Election of John Adams (Federalist) was President, Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) was VP

22. Presidential Succession
In 1841 William Henry Harrison became the first President to die in office, his VP John Tyler became President

23. Presidential Succession
In 1947 Congress passed the Presidential Succession Act which indicates the line of succession after the VP
dential_line_of_succession

24. Presidential Succession
According to this law, if the president and VP die or leave office, the Speaker of the House becomes president
Next in line is the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, then the Secretary of State and other members of the cabinet

25. Presidential Succession
The 25th Amendment (1967) says if the president dies or leaves office the VP becomes president, he then chooses another VP who must be approved by the Senate and House of Representatives
Joint Resolution proposing the 25th Amendment

26. 25th Amendment
Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. (born July 14, 1913 – December 26, 2006) was the thirty-eighth President of the United States, serving from to 1977, and the fortieth Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to He was the first person appointed to the vice- presidency under the terms of the 25th Amendment, and became President upon Richard Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974.

27. Presidential Succession
It also gives the VP a role in determining whether a president is disabled and unable to do the job, if that occurs the VP serves as acting President until the President is ready to go back to work
1985- George H. Bush was acting President while Reagan underwent surgery; 2002 and Dick Cheney was acting President while Bush underwent surgery