American Government

The Founding Fathers, the framers of the

Constitution, wanted to form a government

that did not allow ONE PERSON

to have too much

AUTHORITY or control.

King George III of England

While under the rule of the

British King they learned

that this could be a very bad

system. King George III

The Founding Fathers

wrote the Declaration

Ofindependence

This document would Separate the Colonists

from their ties to England

The Founding Fathers also wrote the

Constitution

The Constitution is the Highest law in the United States.

All other laws come from the Constitution. It tells how the Government works.

The Founding Fathersdecided to

SEPARATE The

POWERso no one part

would have More power

than Another

This is calledthe system

ofChecks

& Balances

TodayThe United States Government

is divided into

3 parts

They are called the

3 BranchesOf

Government

The 3

BranchesOf our

government

The 3 BranchesARE:

Executive

Legislative

Judicial

Each Branch has its own Responsibilities and at the same time they collaborate

to make the country Run SmoothlyThe Constitution also assures us

that the Rights of Citizens are Not Ignored or Disallowed

LEGISLATIVEBranch

• Makes Laws

• Approves Presidential Appointments

• Has 2 Senators Elected from each State

• The number of Congressman is based on population

• Divided into 2 groups: Senate and the House of Representatives

LEGISLATIVEBranch

JudicialBranch

• Are Appointed by the President

• There are only 9 Supreme Court Justices

• Appoints Federal Judges

• Can Overturn Rulings by Other Judges

• Decides if Laws are Constitutional

JudicialBranch

executiveBranch

• Vetoes Laws

• Pardons People

• Appoints Federal Judges

• Elected every 4 years

• Signs Laws

• Includes President, Vice President, & Executive Cabinet

executiveBranch

The Cabinet includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 Executive Departments

They are the Secretaries of:

Agriculture

Commerce

Education

Energy

Health

Defense

Homeland Security

Interior

Housing & Urban Development

Labor

State

Transportation

TreasuryAttorney General

Veteran’s Affairs

executivecabinet

executiveBranch

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden

• Natural-Born US Citizen

• At Least 35 years old

• Must live in the US for 14 years

U.S. Presidents

http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidentsto see all of the

Presidents of the United States of America

Electing a

president

Election 2012Election Day is held on the very first Tuesday in the month of November according to Congress

written back in 1845. This year, that day will be November 6th.

Many US citizens were farmers back then and November was a good time to hold elections because

by then the crops would have been harvested.

Election 2012Presidential Elections have been held since 1789. Since 1792, the US Constitution has required that

Presidential Elections be held every 4 years.

This year’s election will be the 57th Presidential race in US history.

The candidates

The candidatesPresident

Barack Obama has been

nominated to run

for re-election as the Candidate

for the Democratic Party.

A President can only serve two (2) terms,which is equal to 8 years.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

was the only person to be President

for more than two terms.

He served from March 4, 1933 until his death on April 12, 1945,

(12 years and 39 days),

Longer than any otherPresident.

Vice PresidentJoe Bidenhas been

once again asked to be President Obama’s

running mate in this Election.

DemocraticParty

The Democratic Party platform includes

Equal Opportunity, Protecting the Environment,and Healthcare for Everyone

Famous Democratic Presidents include:Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter,

Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

The Candidates

The Republican Nominee

is Former Governor

Mitt RomneyOf

Massachusetts

Paul Ryan,a former

US Congressman

from Wisconsin has been

asked to be Romney’s

running mate in this Election.

republicanParty

The Republican Party platform includes

Rebuilding the Economy, Creating Jobs,

and Reforming Government

Famous Republican Presidents include:Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George Bush,

and George W. Bush.

It takes a lot of work and many months

to be elected president.

People vote during the state primaries and

caucuses. That helps each party decide who

to choose as their candidate.

The candidates try to get people to vote for them by giving speeches, shaking hands,

giving interviews, and paying for ads

on TV, radio, in newspapers, and on the internet.

• 18 years old

• A US Citizen

• Registered to Vote

Voting Rights

The Popular Vote is the actual numberof votes cast by the American public.

Popular vote

This number determines who

wins each “State”

A nominee needs a majority of the electoral votes to win the presidency.

You'll notice, on election night, that the TV commentators keep track

of the states each nominee wins.

They add up the number of electoral votes that each state win represents.

Electoral College

Let’s take a closer look at the Electoral College map of the United States.

Electoral College

The first candidate that reaches 270 votes

to win the Election

Electoral College

At the beginning of every decade, or every ten years, the government

takes a census to determine the population of each state.

It might lose electoral votes if a state's population has decreased.

It may receive more electoral votes than it previously had if a state's population has

increased. The most recent electoral map was drawn up

after the 2000 census.

You can cast your own vote

online at: http://pbskids.org/democracy/vote/