The 60th presidential election in November 2024 assumes extraordinary significance owing to several reasons – Image BBC
The 60 th US Presidential Election: A Pivotal Moment in American History
By Ghulam Mustafa Syed
Karachi, Pakistan
The United States of America is the only superpower in the current global political and economic system based on different power scales. Therefore, the presidential elections in the United States and the government that will come to power as a result of it are being watched with great interest and concern throughout the world. Before we discuss the current presidential election in the US, let's look at the US electoral history.
The Constitution of the United States was ratified in 1788, after which the first presidential election was held in 1789. George Washington was elected the first president, while John Adams became the first vice president. Before this election, America did not have a chief executive: the elements of the Confederacy and the national government were headed by a Confederate Congress with a formal presiding officer and several executive departments, but no independent executive branch.
The 19th Amendment in 1920 marked an important milestone in the history of the country. It gave American women the right to vote. Apart from this, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was also a major democratic development that ensured the right of all citizens to vote.
Although the office of the US president is constitutionally and executively powerful and the president has the power to pass some laws on his own, he mostly has to work with Congress to enact legislation. The president also has considerable freedom to represent his country and conduct foreign policy.
Election 2024: Prospects and Concerns
A total of 59 presidential elections have been held in the United States so far. The 60th presidential election is going to be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. The newly elected president will complete the next four-year term in the White House from January 2025.
The process of nomination of presidential candidates and their deputies by the two central parties of the United States - the Democratic Party and the Republican Party - is quite interesting and truly democratic. The parties choose their candidate through a series of state primaries and caucuses. Former President Donald Trump won the nomination once again with a huge lead over his rivals in the Republican Party. He became the GOP’s official nominee at the Republican conventions in Milwaukee and Wisconsin. On the other hand, after President Joe Biden withdrew, Kamala Harris entered the race on behalf of the Democratic Party. The incumbent Vice President was officially named the presidential candidate at the party's convention in Chicago in August. Some independent candidates are also in the run, the most prominent among them being Robert F. Kennedy Jr, nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, who ended his campaign in late August in favor of Donald Trump.
In the United States, the election of the president does not depend on receiving the most votes across the entire country. Instead, candidates compete to win elections held in the 50 states. Each state has an Electoral College that has a certain number of votes. It is partly based on population. In all but two states, whichever candidate receives the most votes is awarded all the state's Electoral College votes. An example of this is Democrat Hillary Clinton, who won the most votes nationwide in the 2016 election. She lost to Donald Trump on the basis of a narrow margin of electoral votes, despite winning more votes.
Most US states lean heavily toward either the Democrat or Republican parties, so the focus is usually on a dozen or so states. The focus is on where either of them can win. This is why these states are called 'swing states'.
Of the two dominant political parties, the Democratic Party generally advocates progressive policies such as social welfare programs and environmental protection, while the Republican Party is known for its conservative stance on issues such as fiscal responsibility and national security.
The US Congress, like major democracies in the world, consists of two houses. The lower house is called the House of Representatives, while the upper house is called the Senate. The Congress has a total of 538 members, of which 100 are in the Senate while 438 are elected to the House of Representatives.
The decision to form the government in America is based on the majority in Congress. The party that wins at least 270 seats out of the total Congress seats forms the government. Each of the fifty states of the United States is represented in Congress in proportion to its population. Some states are so small that they have only two representatives in Congress. The Democratic Party and the Republican Party have won more than one presidential election. Until now, Democrats have won the presidency more often than Republicans.
The 60th presidential election in November 2024 assumes extraordinary significance owing to several reasons. Former Republican President Donald Trump has once again entered the field and he has apparently put the Democrats in great trouble. For the first time in American history, the candidate of a party, an incumbent president, has withdrawn amid his election campaign for a second term. The prospects of the Democrats markedly improved following the nomination of Kamala Harris. On September 10, after the first and the only TV debate between Trump and Kamala Harris, both camps claimed their respective candidates had won. Still, the outcome of the 2024 US presidential election is uncertain as it will depend on various factors such as voter turnout, campaign strategies, and the political environment.
As the election date approaches, several key factors will shape the campaign and its outcome. Critical issues such as the current Middle East crisis, health care, climate change, economic recovery, and social justice will likely dominate the campaign. Both camps will use different strategies to gain the support of maximum voters.
The view ahead
Indisputably, the political and economic impact of the US on the world during the presidency of Donald Trump was significant. His policies of tax cuts, trade tariffs, and foreign relations shaped global dynamics. If Trump is elected once again his policies can definitely affect global affairs as he is an unconventional politician who does not hesitate the least to take big and unexpected decisions.
However, the 60th presidential election this year will certainly be a pivotal moment in American history that will shape the future direction of the USA and its leadership.
(The author is a senior journalist and writes on various topics. mustafa_gm911@yahoo.com)
