Formal Qualifications (written
in the Constitution
Must be at least 35 years
old
Must have lived in the
United States for 14
years
Must be a natural born
citizen
Demographic Characteristics of
U.S. Presidents
100% male
97% Caucasian
college educated
Most are politicians
60 + % lawyers
>50% from the top 3%
wealth and social class
Few born into poverty
Most elected from
large states
Informal Qualifications to be President
Informal = not written into the Constitution
–
Even though the Constitution doesn’t require
them, most Presidents who win today have these
things in common:
1. Age: Average new Pres. Is 50-60 years old
Barack Obama = 53 years old
2. Education: 4-10 years college
3. Experience: past experience in politics
Most modern Presidents are either Senators,
Governors or Vice Presidents first
4. Personal: White, male (no female Presidents
yet), married, kids,
Presidential Terms
The President serves 4 year terms
– Election every 4 years
22nd Amendment says that a President can only
serve (2) 4 year terms
– Came about because Franklin Roosevelt (FDR)
was elected to 4 terms! (1932, 36, 40, 44)
– 10 year total limit serving as President
Pay & Benefits
The President gets paid $400,000 per year
Also gets $50,000 expense account
$100,000 for travel
Congress gets to vote on how much the
President gets paid (last raise 2001)
Other benefits: living in the White House,
full medical & dental, Air Force One plane,
Executive chef, entertainment $, etc…
One Step Away: The Vice-Presidency
& Presidential Succession
Question: What happens if the President
either dies or becomes disabled?
Choosing a Vice President
Many Presidential candidates choose
a Vice President who can “Balance
the Ticket”
– Someone who can help the Presidential
candidate appeal to a wider group of
voters
– Help to ease concerns people may have
about the Presidential candidate
Ex: Pres. Obama’s lack of foreign relations
experience
Official Role of the V.P.
The only original mention of the Vice
President in the Constitution was to
Preside over the Senate
Otherwise, the primary role of the
V.P. historically has been to be the
President-in-waiting.
Many Presidents have given very few
responsibilities to the Vice President
The Modern V.P
Modern Vice Presidents have been
given more authority than ever
before
– Ex: Dick Cheney played a major role in
policy making under George W. Bush
Planning in Iraq, Homeland Security, etc…
Succeeding the President
25th Amendment says that the V.P.
officially becomes President if necessary
(clears up unclear wording)
25th Amendment
– Ratified in 1967 so that if President dies or
leaves office the VP succeeds and chooses
a new VP (both House and Senate have to
approve)
– Gives VP authority to determine if
President is disabled/unable to do her/his
job
Succeeding the President
Vice President takes over if…
1.Pres. Informs Congress in writing that
he cannot perform duties
1.(has happened on a few occasions)
– V.P. & majority of cabinet inform
Congress of Presidential disability
1.Pres. Can challenge this, Congress has 21
days to decide.
Congress passes Presidential Succession Act of
1947
–
–
1.
2.
Sets the line of succession to President after the V.P.
Used ONLY if President AND Vice President die/are out of
office
Vice President, and then…..
Speaker of the House
President Pro Tempore of the Senate
(Heads of the 15 cabinet departments in order
created)
•
•
•
Secretary of State
Secretary of Treasury
Secretary of Defense
•
Dept of Homeland Security last on list (created 2002)
Vice Presidents who took over as
President
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
John Tyler: (William Henry Harrison, 1841)
Millard Fillmore: (Zachary Taylor, 1850)
Andrew Johnson: (Abe Lincoln, 1865)
Chester A. Arthur: (James Garfield, 1881)
Teddy Roosevelt: (William McKinley, 1901)
Calvin Coolidge: (Warren Harding, 1923)
Harry Truman: (Franklin Roosevelt, 1945)
Lyndon Johnson: (John Kennedy, 1963)
Gerald Ford: (Richard Nixon, 1974)
Question
Candidate 1: 72,459,224 total votes
Also earned 268 electoral votes
Candidate 2: 65,432,331 total votes
Also earned 270 electoral votes
1. Which candidate wins the Presidency?
2. Why is this the case?
12th Amendment (Ratified in 1804)
Original Electoral College setup had
electors vote for 2 candidates, w/runner
up becoming VP
– Political parties were not big at the time
Thomas Jefferson (Pres) & Aaron Burr
(VP) run together in 1800 against John
Adams
– They tie in the Electoral College, House has to
decide election
12th Amendment separates vote for
President and for Vice President
Section 1
When do elections take place?
– Every 4 years
Who elects the President?
– Indirect election by the Electoral College
Each State appoints electors who then vote for one of
the major political candidates
When citizens go to vote the Presidential candidates
are listed but in reality you are choosing for a list of
electors pledged to vote for that candidate
Add up the number of House Reps and the 2 Senators
and that is how many electoral college votes the State
has
Electoral College is seen as a “winner takes all”
system
Section 1
So does my vote count?
– Popular vote is in November- EC vote is
December
– To be elected the candidate needs to receive
270 of the 538 available votes
– If the candidate wins the “popular vote” the
candidate usually also wins the electoral
college vote (but not always)
What if no one wins 270?
– House of Reps votes with each State casting a
single vote
1800 and 1824
Question
Candidate 1: 52,419,823 total votes
Also earned 250 electoral votes
Candidate 2: 45,472,535 total votes
Also earned 200 electoral votes
Candidate 3: 29,127,257 total votes
Also earned 88 electoral votes
1. Which candidate wins the Presidency?
2. Why is this the case?
Question
How could having more than 2 strong
candidates for President drastically
change the electoral college result in the
United States?
Do you believe that the Electoral College
is still necessary today? If yes, why? If
no, describe a better solution?