The United States will vote for its 47th President tomorrow. Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris are locked in a tough fight for the top post.
As the country has multiple time zones, polling in the US will begin tomorrow between 5.30 pm and 7.30 pm India Standard Time. Most polling stations in the country will close between 5.30 am and 9.30 am Indian time on Wednesday. Results of the elections are expected as polling closes, but it will take days before it is known who will be the next US president.
On the final day of campaigning today, Presidential hopefuls are holding rallies, focusing on crucial swing states of Pennsylvania and Michigan. Harris is set to appear in the cities of Allentown, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. On the other hand, Trump will be in North Carolina before making appearances in Pennsylvania and Michigan.
Many people may have already cast their vote ahead of time using the postal voting system. According to the University of Florida’s Election Lab, more than 78 million Americans have already voted, approaching half the total 160 million votes cast in 2020, in which US voter turnout was the highest in more than a century.
In the United States, the President is not elected by popular vote but by an indirect election system called the Electoral College, one of the most unique features of the world’s oldest modern democracy.
A candidate aspiring to become the next US president needs an absolute majority of 270 or more votes out of 538 electoral college votes.
On the 6th of January, next year, a joint session of Congress counts the electoral votes. If a candidate reaches 270 votes, they are declared the President-elect, even if they lose the national popular vote. The inauguration occurs on the 20th of January, marking the start of their four-year term in office.
