Today people across the United States are voting to elect their next president. Polls suggest that Vice President Kamala Harris and Ex-President Donald Trump are very nearly tied. The results of the election will have important effects not just in America, but around the world.
No matter who wins, the election results will be historic. If Ms. Harris wins, she will become the first female president of the US. If Mr. Trump wins, he will be the first president in over 125 years to win two terms that weren’t in a row.
The results will also make a huge difference in the direction of the US over the next four years. Ms. Harris, a Democrat, and Mr. Trump, a Republican, have very different ideas in almost all areas. There is a table at the bottom of this article which gives a very simple summary of a few of the important positions held by Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump.
(Source: Harris: Lawrence Jackson [Public domain], Trump: Gage Skidmore [CC BY-SA 2.0]. Both via Wikimedia Commons)
One area where the two candidates are very different is in their ideas about America’s democracy and its system of government. Americans vote to elect their leaders. The different branches of the US government are designed to balance each other out. Ms. Harris has promised to work to protect this system.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly challenged this system. Many of these challenges came after he lost the 2020 election for president, and refused to accept the results. Mr. Trump and his supporters spent a very long time fighting the results.
(Source: Elvert Barnes [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons.)
In one dramatic event, thousands of Mr. Trump’s supporters violently attacked the US Capitol building. Several people died, and dozens were injured. Still, Mr. Trump has the strong support of the Republican party. Most Republicans share Mr. Trump’s belief that he has not been treated fairly.
Critics say Ms. Harris does not have the experience needed to lead the country. They point out that she has changed her positions in many areas, and that her record as vice president is not impressive.
The election results will have a personal effect for the ex-president. Mr. Trump has been found guilty of several crimes, and has been charged with others. If he isn’t elected president, he could face punishment for these crimes. If he becomes president, he is unlikely to be punished.
😕
This image has not been loaded because of your cookie choices. To view the content, you can accept 'Non-necessary' cookies.
Ms. Harris has said that she will accept the results of the election and make sure there is a “peaceful transfer of power”. So far, Mr. Trump has not agreed to accept the election results, and it’s possible he could try to challenge the results if he loses.
Mr. Trump says that if he wins, he will use his power as president to go after people who have opposed him in the past. This includes current President Joe Biden, Ms. Harris, lawmakers, lawyers, judges, reporters, and election workers.
Experts say the race is incredibly close. The winner will probably be decided by the results in several important “swing” states. Though the voting will end on Tuesday night, it could be a while before the results are known. It can take days to count all the votes accurately.
Ms. Harris has said that she will accept the results of the election and make sure there is a “peaceful transfer of power”. So far, Mr. Trump has not agreed to accept the election results.
The table below gives a very simple summary of a few of the important positions held by Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump.
Did You Know…?
In the US, the final decision about who will become president is made in the Electoral College. In this system, each state gets a certain number of “electoral votes”. For example, Georgia gets 16 electoral votes. Normally when a candidate wins the most votes (of people) in a state, the state’s electoral votes go to that candidate. In all, there are 538 electoral votes. To win the election, a candidate must get 270 votes in the Electoral College.