A simple guide to the US election 2024

Election Day successful the United States is little than a week away, truthful here’s what you request to cognize astir however the 2024 statesmanlike vote works.

Who tin vote?

In the US, citizens indispensable conscionable immoderate precise basal eligibility criteria successful bid to vote. They indispensable be:

• A US citizen
• A nonmigratory of the authorities wherever they registered to vote
• 18 years oregon older

Voter eligibility tin alteration from authorities to state, peculiarly erstwhile it comes to transgression convictions. For example, individuals who person a transgression grounds whitethorn look restrictions successful definite states, including losing the close to ballot permanently.

There are astir 160 cardinal registered voters, but not each of them volition vote. In the 2020 election, the turnout was astir 66 percent, the highest it has been for much than a century.

Republican campaigner Donald Trump, left, and Democratic campaigner Kamala Harris [File: Eduardo Munoz, Nathan Howard/Reuters]

How does the US predetermination work?

US authorities is dominated by 2 parties, the broadly centre-left and wide Democrats and the right-wing and blimpish Republicans; imaginable candidates look from either enactment to vie for the statesmanlike nomination. To prime their nominee, the Democrats and Republicans clasp primary elections oregon caucuses successful each state, which culminates successful the victor accepting the information astatine either the Republican oregon Democratic National Conventions. This rhythm present pits Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris against erstwhile Republican President Donald Trump.

US President Joe Biden had initially sought re-election to a 2nd term, but helium dropped retired successful July aft a disastrous statement show raised questions astir his quality to govern for different 4 years.

There are besides third-party oregon autarkic candidates, specified arsenic the Green Party’s Jill Stein, the Libertarian Party’s Chase Oliver, and the anti-war academic, Cornel West.

In the elections phase, statesmanlike candidates name their ain running mates — successful this case, Democrat and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Republican Ohio Senator JD Vance — who volition go vice president if the nominee’s candidacy is successful. Voters past formed their ballots for a president and vice president, and the effect of this ballot is past channeled done the Electoral College.

Since 1845, US elections person been held on the archetypal Tuesday of November. However, voters besides person the enactment of voting aboriginal successful astir states, and much than 52 cardinal votes person already been cast.

Voters depart an predetermination centre during superior voting, Tuesday, May 21, 2024, successful Kennesaw, Georgia [File: Mike Stewart/AP Photo]

How does the Electoral College work?

To recognize however US elections work, and however voters take their adjacent leader, 1 indispensable recognize the US Electoral College.

Unlike members of the US Congress, who are straight chosen by voters, the US president is not elected by a nonstop nationalist vote. Instead, erstwhile Americans formed their ballots, they are selecting a slate of “electors” from their authorities who pledge to ballot for circumstantial statesmanlike and vice-presidential candidates, based connected the votes formed successful the authorities for each candidate. Once votes are counted and certified, these electors formally formed their votes. The infographic beneath outlines this process.

(Al Jazeera)

Want to cognize much astir the Electoral College? Watch the abbreviated explainer video below, oregon work this little overview.

How galore electoral votes does it instrumentality to triumph the election?

It takes 270 electoral votes to triumph a US statesmanlike election, which is simply a bulk of the 538 full electoral votes available.

This strategy tin make astonishing outcomes: a campaigner can triumph the fashionable ballot crossed the state yet suffer the Electoral College, which has happened 5 times successful US history. The astir caller lawsuit was successful 2016, erstwhile Trump won the presidency implicit Hillary Clinton contempt trailing by astir 3 cardinal votes nationwide.

(Al Jazeera)

What are the polls saying?

As Election Day approaches, Harris and Trump are neck and neck, fiercely competing for power of cardinal plaything states. We’re intimately watching undecided voters successful these states, who could successful information plaything the contention successful either direction.

Harris holds a constrictive 1.5-point pb nationally, according to FiveThirtyEight’s canvass tracker, though Trump has astir closed the gap. A Reuters/Ipsos canvass places Harris up by conscionable 1 point, wrong the borderline of error.

A surface displaying the US statesmanlike statement betwixt Republican statesmanlike campaigner and erstwhile US President Donald Trump and Democratic statesmanlike campaigner and Vice President Kamala Harris astatine The Admiral barroom and edifice successful Washington, DC, connected September 10, 2024 [File: Allison Bailey/AFP]

Trump leads connected economic and immigration issues, portion Harris has a diminishing vantage connected political extremism.

Swing states similar Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Arizona amusement razor-thin margins. Although nationalist polls favour Harris, the Electoral College result remains uncertain, echoing past predetermination unpredictability.

When volition we cognize who won? When volition the results beryllium announced?

That’s up successful the air. It’s highly improbable that a victor volition beryllium determined connected predetermination night. However, it’s not retired of the question. Historically, a victor would beryllium announced connected the nighttime of oregon greeting aft the election.

As polls adjacent crossed the state connected Election Day, the media volition study real-time results, with results coming successful from the Eastern Time Zone first. Final tallies whitethorn not beryllium disposable immediately, peculiarly with the accrued measurement of mail-in and absentee ballots. In immoderate cases, states person laws allowing ballots postmarked by Election Day to beryllium counted adjacent if they get later. This process tin pb to delays successful definite states, peculiarly those with constrictive margins.

These delays could beryllium seized upon by Trump to dispersed the communicative that the predetermination has been stolen, arsenic helium falsely tried to bash successful 2020. In that election, galore of the votes that arrived oregon were counted precocious were for the Democrats, typically due to the fact that the enactment has much enactment successful cities wherever ballot counting takes longer, and due to the fact that Trump discouraged his supporters from utilizing mail-in ballots.

If nary campaigner wins 270 electoral votes, a contingent election occurs. The House elects the president, with each authorities casting 1 vote, and the Senate elects the vice president. A House campaigner needs a bulk (26 states) to win. This uncommon process past happened successful 1824 erstwhile John Quincy Adams was elected by the House of Representatives aft Andrew Jackson won the fashionable and electoral votes but fell abbreviated of a majority.

The White House successful Washington, DC, the location of the US president and the awesome of statesmanlike powerfulness [File: Zach Gibson/EPA-EFE]

What are the cardinal dates to watch?

• Election Day: November 5 – Most Americans ballot successful idiosyncratic oregon by mail.
• Certification deadlines: November 6 – December 11 – States certify predetermination results wrong this timeframe.
• Electoral College vote: December 17 – Electors conscionable to formed their authoritative votes.
• Congress counts electoral votes: January 6, 2025 – Congress convenes to number and corroborate electoral votes.
• Inauguration Day: January 20, 2025 – The president-elect is sworn in, marking the modulation of power.