The election 2024 has historical value as it is the second time in US history that voters are able to go back to the ballot to cast their vote in favor of the new President. This election has general consequences for US citizens and for global politics as well because the United States is one of the world’s greatest international superpowers. With contentious debates on various issues, an array of candidates to choose from in an increasingly complex system, those watching or taking part in the 2024 elections have to be well-informed on the dynamics of the system. This knowledge and awareness is what this article intends to cover: an ideal and informative guide to the different elements of the Election 2024, its timetable, candidates, the major issues at stake and the Election 2024 procedures for the citizens.
When Is Election Day?
For no other reason than the scheduling of the Election Day in America, it is good to note that Election Day falls on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, for the time being. This is due to the fact that federal law determines the timing of such events and in this case of such event, so it is clear there is always an election for President once every four years. The United States presidential election occurs on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. This date is fixed but the constancy of the date of primary elections seems more than strange considering the evolution over time over American voting systems, especially in recent years, as many states have started liberalizing early voting as well as mail-in options.
Why Is It Possible To Vote Days Before Election Day?
The official day of elections is the 5th of November, however, in light of the early voting and an absentee ballot provision, the election 2024 will cover a span of many weeks. As a response to long lines at polling places, states have incorporated early voting to promote greater convenience and different time-affordability options. By the time voting day comes, millions of Americans have already participated in early or mail-in voting. The states have different rules on early voting: some states start it several weeks prior, and some start just a week before voting day.
Mail-in ballots have also become a necessity over the years due to the Covid-19 pandemic and given the existing issues raised over the accessibility of the voting process. In many states, citizens can utilize a no-excuse absentee ballot which means a voter can request a mail-in ballot sent to their preferred address. This practice has found many advocates in the recent elections as voters were attracted by the convenience of this approach.
Who Are the Candidates of Election 2024?
It’s still too early to call, but in this case, we’d say the elections’ race has two clear favorites from the start, the nominees of the designated parties. In the presidential elections, the face of the Republican party is Donald Trump and represents the party. It’s safe to say there are only two main parties with a legitimate chance. As the course of the elections showed, two vice-presidents managed to gain quite a bit of visibility, Obama and Kamala Harris. The election will be viewed singularly in part due to these two candidates, and at least through the media’s lens, it has to be viewed in broad strokes all the time.
As for the republicans, the fact that Trump had a significantly controversial term in office does not seem to have changed the fact that he still who possesses a loyal following. For the democrats, Harris is seeking to consolidate the coalitions formed during the Biden’s administration and extended it even further. Still, third-party candidates have made some efforts to take the votes as well; however, they do not really change the elections much in most cases.
What Makes Trump and Harris the Front Runners?
In the upcoming 2024 election, Trump and Harris are the front runners and this is because of their prominence, the support they have, and their level of experience in national politics. Trump still enjoys a conservative residual support as his previous tenure as a president had a great impact especially on his economic deregulation, immigration, and national security policies. His image as a politician and the style of his work still have great appeal among a significant part of the Republican electorate.
As the incumbent vice president, Harris has both executive inexperience as well as resists extreme conservatism on social issues, climate change policies, and healthcare. She is also part of the Dem establishment and hopes to attract a wide range of voters from moderate liberals to the progressive wing of the party. Consequently, both Trump and Harris represent the established and well known candidates of two major political parties in the US.
What is the Timeline for a Winner to be Announced?
November 5 will be the date that voters get to cast their votes on the ballot during Election Day. However, it is likely that the official results will not be available that same night. Since there will be many mail-in ballots as well, particularly as several strands will accept these votes after election day, it is likely that the votes will take a couple of days to tabulate fully. Furthermore, some states may experience legal troubles or overturned key states result which may worsen the devastation. The 2024 election will be similar to the previous ones in that, the four years media will forecast the election when the election data is available. Unlike the role of the media which does not wait for the very last resident of the state to vote, it is the actual residents of the.states that determines the result saw page The meetings of the electoral college will occur within the month of December to formally elect the president of the United States and the outcome is verified by Congress at the turning of the years.
Which Issues Will Dominate the 2024 Elections?
The 2024 election has its fair share of both domestic and foreign affairs that voters are key in determining the direction in which the nation takes. The following themes are some of the highlight issues which are expected to have an impact during the elections next year :
Economy and Inflation: Growth of the Australian economy is still an issue especially due to inflation and all voters are looking for a solution to the increasing costs and stability in the economy. Also high on the list will be the creation of jobs, great income gaps and standing with the small businesses.
Healthcare & Social Services: Most Americans face severe crises in having access to healthcare, the costs of prescription medications, and the proposals for social security reform. In this regard, seeking affordable solutions is becoming increasingly popular among US citizens.
Climate Change and Environmental Policies: As in other industrialized societies, climate policy continues to divide society in the USA, and while the active debates have moved onto clean energy and carbon emissions, environmental regulations are also present in such disputes.
Immigration: Both border insecurity, and immigration are issues that divide masses, as the voters are over the issues pertaining to the control of immigration and the number of asylum seekers that come in from the southern border.
Foreign Policy and National Security: Bearing in mind the contemporary geopolitical scenario, it is easy to declare foreign policy and national security as the prime areas of consideration. US-China relations, involvement of US in foreign wars and cyber security are the major areas of focus too.
Social Justice and Rights: Older generations might not be that easily swayed by issues concerning racial justice or LGBTQ+, yet nearly young developed world voters include these topics among their core issues, along with that of the reproductive rights one.
How Is a United States President Elected?
In the United States, the president is elected by the use of the Electoral College, which makes the process of election indirect. Congress gives each state a certain number of electors from whom the president will be voted for. This makes a candidate contest president as a slate of electors that is in favor of one specific candidate. However, to become the president, a candidate has to have at least 270 of the 538 votes that the United States has.
Each state’s Population: How Many Electoral Votes Does Each Get?
The number of electoral votes each state is allocated to depends upon its population ignoring the fact that every state has a minimum of three votes. California has the most population, so she has the highest number of votes, which are 55, while Wyoming has the lowest population so their electoral votes stand at 3. There is a periodic recalculation which occurs every ten years after the Census to adjust due to movement of people.
This means that there is a fair representation between voters in larger areas and voters that reside in smaller areas which enables the lesser populated areas to fragment the representation more so than what effect the larger populated areas have.
What Are the Battleground States in 2024?
Battleground states, also referred to as swing states, are those states where the outcome of the elections is uncertain, and could go either way between the two major parties. In the US elections, such states are a very vital component in deciding who the eventual victor or winner of an election will be. Specifically for the 2024 elections, key battleground states include Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona and Georgia. These states are important for both candidates as winning these states is crucial to their success since they hold a considerable amount of electoral votes and have the capacity to determine the overall outcome of the elections. Typically, these efforts and advertisement campaigns are directed towards these areas, as a lot of these attempts aim at attracting undecided or independent voters in such places.
What If There’s a Tie?
On that extremely rare case when the president candidate wins and gets only 269 vote, no candidate gets more than 269 votes, there can be a tie. In such a scenario, the outcome of the elections defaults to Congress. In such cases, the president is elected through the House of Representatives where each state delegation gets one vote and elects the president, and the vice president is voted by the Senate. This procedure has taken place only once in the us history, which was during the times of 1800 election, therefore demonstrating that such phenomenon as a tie in Electoral College occurs one in a blue moon.
Conclusion
For all American citizens, the Election 2024 will be of great importance as it centers around major policy concerns, major campaigning among candidates and considerable changes in US policy is also likely. Notwithstanding the relevance of the economy and reform of healthcare and addressing climate change and other social problems, the election in America touches on many different important issues that should concern all Americans. If voters comprehend how this election works, its problems, and how it develops, they will be able to make rational political decisions and participate in the election process which shapes the policies of the country.