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Presidential Election Facts

Presidential Election Facts
One of the defining aspects of the American Revolution and the government that was later created with the United States Constitution was the creation of the "presidential system" style of democracy. In all previous forms of republican and democratic governments, the head of state was chosen or elected by representatives who were elected by eligible voters. For example, in the United Kingdom, which the United States broke from, the prime minister was/is the head of government chosen by elected representatives of the majority party, while the king or queen is the head of state. The creation of the presidential system meant that the United States president, the head of state, was chosen directly by the voters. Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the United States Constitution states that each individual state must appoint electors, whose numbers are based on the population of the state and that the winner of the presidency is the candidate who wins the majority of the electoral votes. This process is known as Electoral College. Each state is given a minimum of one electoral vote for the population and two for each senator with an electoral vote being added for each additional congressional district. Due to the nature of the Electoral College, it is possible for a candidate to lose the overall popular vote, but win a majority of the votes in certain states and therefore win the Electoral College and presidency.
Interesting Presidential Election Facts:
If no presidential candidate wins a majority of electoral votes, the House of Representatives chooses the president.
In the 1876, 1888, 2000, and 2016 presidential elections the winner did not win the popular vote.
After the nations of Latin American achieved independence in the 1800s, nearly every country duplicated the American presidential system.
The president has the power to veto any bill given to him to sign by the Congress, but the Congress can override the president's veto with a 2/3 majority.
During the 1876 presidential election, after an Oregon elector was deemed inadmissible because he held elected office, he was replaced by an elector who voted for Democrat candidate Samuel Tilden, although future president Rutherford B. Hayes won the majority of votes in the state.
The American president is the head of the executive branch of the government and the "Commander in Chief" of the military, which can be traced back to the office of consul in ancient Rome.
Although there have been recent calls to eliminate the Electoral College in the United States, it is very unlikely to happen since it would require a 2/3 majority by either the entire Congress or of each of the individual states' legislatures to do so.
In the 1860 presidential election Abraham Lincoln only won 39.8% of the popular vote, but won a plurality and the majority of the electoral votes as there were three other major candidates.


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