Why does the US set the US presidential election on the first Tuesday of November?

The US electoral system has long been a source of confusion for foreigners. One of them is why, for hundreds of years, the US has always held its presidential election on the first Tuesday of November.

Illustration: US Today

In just over 13 days, some 120 million Americans will go to the polls to elect their next president. This year, the US presidential election falls on Tuesday, November 8.

According to the practice adopted by the US Congress since the 19th century, election day is set on the first Tuesday of November. Thus, according to this regulation, this year's US presidential election should have fallen on November 1st, but this day coincides with the Saint's Day and is also the day when businesses are busy summarizing the activities of the previous month, so it will be moved to the following Tuesday, that is, November 8th.

The reason why American lawmakers since the 19th century set the election date on Tuesday in November is for many different reasons. First, November is considered an appropriate time because the American people in the past were mainly agricultural farmers and November is considered a leisure month when farmers finish harvesting and prepare for a harsh winter. Specifically, if the election is held in late spring or early summer, it is believed that it will affect the farmers' planting plans, while if it falls in late summer or early fall, it will coincide with the harvest time.

But why didn’t the election take place on any day of the week instead of Tuesday as was the norm? This was because Sunday was the day for church services, while Monday was also unsuitable because American farmers at that time would not be able to get to the polling stations in towns or big cities on time because it would take them a day to travel. Wednesday was considered farmers’ market day. Tuesday was considered more suitable. To this day, the US still maintains this tradition.

The vote counting will begin shortly after the polls close and by the end of the election day. After this time, voters may begin to get a vague idea of ​​who will be the winner from the polls. However, the results will be clearer around 11pm on the same day (that is, around 11am the next day Vietnam time). If all goes well, the two candidates will then make public speeches, with one declaring victory and the other conceding.

According to Dan Tri