Election Day (United States)

Election Day in the United States is the day when polls most often open for the election of elected public officials. Election Day happens on the Tuesday following the first Monday of November in an even year, i.e. the Tuesday between November 2 and November 8, inclusively.

This rule was instituted by the U.S. Congress in 1845, and the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November was chosen to keep the election day from falling on November 1, All Saints Day, a Holy Day of Obligation for Roman Catholics.

Article One of the United States Constitution requires that any election for the U.S. President must occur on a single day throughout the country; elections for Congressional offices, however, can be held at different times.

Election Day is a legal holiday in some states, including Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maryland, Montana, New Jersey, New York and Ohio.

Changes

With the introduction of early voting and widespread absentee voting in many states, Election Day is no longer the only day on which citizens cast their ballots for the Presidency and other offices.

Logistics

There are tens of thousands of voting precincts in the United States, each of which must be supplied and staffed with poll workers on Election Day, usually a workday in most of the country.

Objections

Many social activists oppose this date, believing that it decreases voter turnout, since it is part of the workweek. Many advocate making election day a national holiday.

Many states have countered this by implementing early voting, which allows the voters to cast ballots, in many cases up to two weeks early. The details vary from state to state, but it can include Saturdays.

Federal elections

Elective offices of the U.S. government are filled by Election Day balloting, for terms starting in January of the following year, specifically:

in every even-numbered year,
- for all seats in the United States House of Representatives;
- for approximately 1/3 of United States Senate seats;
additionally, in years divisible by four,
- for the President and Vice-President.

State elections

Elective offices of most states of the US are also filled on Election Day, but different states choose different patterns; every odd numbered year, for at least some offices, is a popular choice. Most states now hold elections for governors in those even-numbered years when there is not a presidential election, in part to stimulate a higher voter turnout for "off-year" Congressional elections.

Local elections

Elective offices of municipalities, counties (in most states), and other local entities (such school boards and other special-purpose districts) have their elections subject to rules of their state, and in some states, they vary according to choices of the jurisdiction in question. (For instance, in Connecticut, all towns, cities, and boroughs hold elections in every odd-numbered year, but as of 2004, 16 have them on the first Monday in May, while the other hundred-and-some are on Election Day.)