US election 2024: A simple guide to the US presidential election
Americans will head to the polls in November to elect the next US president.
A US president has a big influence on the lives of not only Americans, but many others around the world, so it’s an election that is vital – and that many will be watching.
The US political landscape is dominated by two parties: Democrats and Republicans.
The Democrats are the traditionally liberal left-leaning party, usually pushing for civil rights, a broad social safety net and measures to address climate change.
The Republicans (also known as GOP) are the conservative political party and are known for lower taxes, small government, gun rights and tighter rules around immigration and abortion.
Current US President Joe Biden is expected to gain the Democratic nomination, whilst former president Donald Trump looks likely to gain the Republican nomination.
If both secure their party’s nominations the 2024 presidential race will be a rematch of the 2020 race: which saw Biden narrowly beat Trump to the White House.
When is the next US presidential election?
The 2024 election will be on Tuesday, 5 November 2024. The winner will serve a single term of four years in the White House starting in January 2025.
Who are the candidates and how are they nominated?
The race to the White House has already begun with campaigns well under way. It started with 15 candidates – nine Republicans, four Democrats and two independents – though many have already dropped out.
The country’s two main parties: are Democrats and Republicans, they will nominate a presidential candidate by holding a series of state primaries and caucuses.
There are differences between the parties and the process varies from one state to another.
March 5 – aka Super Tuesday – is a massive event in the US elections, because more than a dozen states will hold their primary contests on that day.
President Joe Biden (Democrat) announced he would seek re-election earlier this year. He is overwhelmingly expected to win the Democratic Party nomination despite some recent rumblings over his age and competency.
Donald Trump (Republican) is expected to easily win the GOP nomination, with his nearest rival Nikki Haley still miles behind.
Some independent candidates are also running for president.
How does the US presidential election work?
Once nominated both candidates will compete to win electoral college votes.
Each US state has a certain number of electoral college votes – partly based on the state’s population size.
There is a total of 538 up for grabs, so the winner is the candidate that wins 270 or more.
It means voters decide state-level contests rather than the national ones, meaning it’s possible for a candidate to win the most votes nationally – known as the popular vote – but still be defeated by the Electoral College.
A recent example of this is the 2016 US election. Hilary Clinton won the popular vote – but still lost the election.
All but two states have a winner-takes-all rule, so the candidate who wins the most votes is awarded all of the states’s electoral college votes.
Most states lean either Democratic or Republican so the focus is usually on swing states -also known as battleground states. The US has around a dozen swing states – usually won by fine margins.
What’s the Congress election?
Not only will Americans be voting for their next president but they will also choose new members of Congress – the government’s legislature – when they fill in their ballots.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for election, whilst 33 seats in the Senate will be available.
Currently, the Republicans control the House and the Democrats control the Senate.
Both chambers of Congress pass legislation and can act as a check on White House plans if the controlling party if either chamber disagrees with the president.
When do we get the results from the 2024 election?
The election will take place on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.
A winner is usually declared on the night, but it can take longer if it’s a tight race.
There is a period after the election when the new president (if Biden isn’t reelected) will transition into office. It gives the new administration, including cabinet ministers, time to form and plan for the new term.
The new US president is sworn into office in January in a ceremony known as the inauguration. It is held on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington DC.