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A Simple Guide to the 2024 US Elections | News about the 2024 US elections
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A Simple Guide to the 2024 US Elections | News about the 2024 US elections

Election Day is less than a week away in the United States, so here’s what you need to know about how the 2024 presidential election works.

Who can vote?

In the US, citizens must meet some very basic criteria in order to vote. They must:

  • An American citizen
  • A resident of the state where they registered to vote
  • 18 years or older

Voter eligibility can vary from state to state, especially when it comes to criminal convictions. For example, individuals with criminal records may face restrictions in some states, including permanent loss of voting rights.

It is estimated that more than 230 million people are eligible to vote in the United States. But about 160 million of them are registered voters, and not all of them will actually vote. In the 2020 election, turnout was about 66 percent of eligible voters, the highest in more than a century.

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Republican candidate Donald Trump, left, and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris (File: Eduardo Munoz, Nathan Howard/Reuters)

How do US elections work?

American politics is dominated by two parties: the largely center-left and liberal Democrats and the right-wing and conservative Republicans; potential candidates emerge from both parties to vie for the presidential nomination. To select their nominee, Democrats and Republicans in each state hold primaries or caucuses, which culminate in the victor accepting the nomination at the Republican or Democratic National Conventions. This cycle now pits Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris against former Republican President Donald Trump.

US President Joe Biden had initially sought re-election for a second term, but resigned in July after a disastrous debate raised questions about his ability to rule for another four years.

There are also third-party or independent candidates, such as Jill Stein of the Green Party, Chase Oliver of the Libertarian Party and anti-war academic Cornel West.

In the election phase, presidential candidates appoint their own running mates – in this case, Democrat and Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz and Republican Senator JD Vance of Ohio – who will become vice president if the candidate’s candidacy is successful. Voters then cast their votes for a president and a vice president, and the results of this vote are then relayed through the Electoral College.

Since 1845, American elections have been held on the first Tuesday in November. However, voters in most states also have the option to vote early, and more than 52 million votes have already been cast.

Trump
Voters leave an election center during the primary, Tuesday, May 21, 2024, in Kennesaw, Georgia (File: Mike Stewart/AP Photo)

How does the Electoral College work?

To understand how American elections work and how voters choose their next leader, one must understand the American Electoral College.

Unlike members of the U.S. Congress, who are elected directly by voters, the U.S. president is not elected through a direct national vote. Instead, when Americans cast their ballots, they select a set of “electors” from their state who pledge to vote for specific presidential and vice-presidential candidates, based on the votes cast in the state for each candidate. Once the votes are counted and certified, these voters formally cast their votes. The infographic below outlines this process.

Interactive_US_elections_2024_Electoral_College
(Al Jazeera)

Want to know more about the Electoral College? Watch the short explanation video below, or read this short overview.

How many electoral votes are needed to win the election?

It takes 270 electoral votes to win the US presidential election, which is a majority of the total 538 available electoral votes.

This system can produce surprising results: A candidate can win the popular vote nationwide and still lose the Electoral College, which has happened five times in American history. The most recent example was in 2016, when Trump won the presidency over Hillary Clinton, despite a national deficit of almost three million votes.

Interactive_US_elections_2024_Electoral College predictions
(Al Jazeera)

What do the polls say?

As Election Day approaches, Harris and Trump are competing neck and neck for control of key swing states. We’re keeping a close eye on the undecided voters in these states, who could actually swing the race in either direction.

Harris has a narrow 1.5-point lead nationally, according to the FiveThirtyEight poll, although Trump has nearly closed the gap. A Reuters/Ipsos poll shows Harris ahead by just one point, within the margin of error.

A passerby stops to watch a screen showing the US presidential debate between vice president and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump
A screen showing the US presidential debate between Republican presidential candidate and former US President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris at The Admiral bar and restaurant in Washington, DC, on September 10, 2024 (File: Allison Bailey/AFP )

Trump leads on the economy and immigration, while Harris has a shrinking lead on political extremism.

Swing states such as Pennsylvania, Georgia and Arizona show razor-thin margins. While national polls favor Harris, the Electoral College outcome remains uncertain, reflecting the unpredictability of recent elections.

When will we know who won? When will the results be announced?

That’s up in the air. It is highly unlikely that a winner will be determined on election night. However, it is not excluded. Historically, a winner was announced the evening of or the morning after the election.

As polls across the country close on Election Day, the media will report real-time results, with results coming in from the Eastern time zone first. Final numbers may not be immediately available, especially given the increased number of mail-in and absentee ballots. In some cases, states have laws that allow ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted even if they arrive later. This process can lead to delays in certain states, especially those with narrow margins.

These delays could be used by Trump to spread the story that the election was stolen, as he falsely tried to do in 2020. In that election, many of the votes that came in or were counted late were for Democrats, mostly because the party has more support in cities where vote counting takes longer, and because Trump discouraged his supporters from using mail-in ballots .

If no candidate receives 270 electoral votes, a contingent election will take place. The House elects the president, with each state casting one vote, and the Senate elects the vice president. A candidate for the House of Representatives needs a majority (26 states) to win. This rare process last occurred in 1824 when John Quincy Adams was elected to the House of Representatives after Andrew Jackson won the popular and electoral votes but fell short of a majority.

Exterior of the White House - Unfair Game - documentary
The White House in Washington, DC, home of the US president and the symbol of presidential power (File: Zach Gibson/EPA-EFE)

What are the most important dates to look at?

  • Election Day: November 5 – Most Americans vote in person or by mail.
  • Certification deadlines: November 6 – December 11 – States certify election results within this time frame.
  • Electoral College vote: December 17 – Voters gather to cast their official votes.
  • Congress counts electoral votes: January 6, 2025 – Congress meets to count and certify the electoral votes.
  • Inauguration Day: January 20, 2025 – The elected president is sworn in, marking the transfer of power.