The presidential race is the process that leads to a person becoming President of the United States. People with similar ideas form political parties and each party holds primary elections and caucuses to decide which candidate will be their nominee.
Primaries and caucuses are more localized than a national election with fewer voters participating. However, they are often highly contested and have a great impact on the race. Candidates compete to win the support of party members, known as delegates, who will attend the party’s convention to choose their final presidential nominee.
Following the primary and caucus votes, a general election is held where voters across the country cast their ballot for a president and vice president. A candidate must win 270 electoral votes to win the presidency.
In the final stretch of the campaign, Trump maintained a slight lead over Harris in most national polls. Harris had a slight edge among voters with four-year college degrees, but it was more than offset by Trump’s advantage among voters without college degrees.
Unless there are faithless electors or other disputes, the winner of the electoral college is announced on December 20 (unless it’s a Sunday then January 21) and is sworn in as president and vice president on January 21. The new president has the power to make treaties and other international agreements with foreign nations after receiving congressional approval. The vice president acts as president if the president-elect becomes ill or incapacitated.
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