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Elections offer American voters the opportunity to participate
their government with little investment of time or personal effort. The presidential election is often criticized as a choice between two evils, yet citizens can play a prominent part in every stage of the race and influence who the final candidates actually are.
When candidates run for office, they are most likely to choose local or state office first. Another factor for potential candidates is whether the position (called seat) they are considering is competitive or open. A competitive seat describes a race where a challenger runs against the incumbent—the current office holder. An open seat is one whose incumbent is not running for re-election. The general election campaign period occurs between mid-August and early November. About 50 percent of voters will
their decisions based on party membership, so the candidates will focus on winning over independent voters and visiting states where the election is close.
The president of the United States is not chosen directly
popular vote but by a group called the Electoral College - constitutionally created group of individuals, chosen by the states, with the responsibility of selecting the next U.S. president. The number of electors from each state is equal to that state's number of senators (which is always two) plus the number of Representatives for that state which can vary.
The United States Electoral College is the only remaining electoral college in democracies where an executive president (a head of state who is also head of government) is indirectly elected via an electoral college. The other democracies that used an electoral college for these elections
to direct elections in the 19th or 20th century.
The electoral college is argued to be fundamental to American federalism. It is
on the notion that it requires candidates for president to appeal to voters in all states, or a substantial portion of states, rather than only those with large population
might hold greater power in elections based on simple majority. Another argument states that the Electoral College prevents a tyranny of the majority that would ignore the less densely populated heartland and rural states in favour of the mega-cities. Critics argue that the electoral college system does not provide for direct democratic election, affords less-populous states an advantage, and allows a candidate to win the presidency without winning the most votes.
Odlučite radi li se o točnoj (true) ili netočnoj (false) tvrdnji.
The text suggests that participating in American government through elections requires a significant amount of personal time.
Voters have the ability to affect the selection of final candidates before the presidential race even begins.
An "open seat" refers to a political position where the current office holder is actively seeking to be re-elected.
Presidential candidates pay attention mostly to voters who are already members of their political party.
The Electoral College was established by the US Constitution as the method for selecting the president.
Every US state always has exactly the same number of electors in the Electoral College.
The United States is currently the only democracy with an executive president that still uses an indirect election system.
Supporters of the Electoral College argue that it forces candidates to gain support from a wide variety of states rather than just the most populated ones.
The "tyranny of the majority" is a term used by critics who want to abolish the Electoral College.
Under the current system, it is mathematically possible for a candidate to become president even if more people voted for their opponent.