Executive Branch Executive Branch President Qualifications Naturalborn citizen

Executive Branch

Executive Branch • President Qualifications – Natural-born citizen • Anyone born in a foreign country later becomes a citizen is not eligible – Must live in the United States for 14 years • Does not need to be consecutive years – President must be at least 35 years old Theodore Roosevelt – Youngest person to take office as the President (not elected) – succeeding William Mc. Kinley, who was assassinated in 1901

Executive Branch Term Pay and Benefits • 22 nd Amendment • $400, 000 a year – Limits the President to only 2 terms • This was before the amendment was created 22 nd – Constitution originally had no limit • Franklin Roosevelt was elected to four terms • Lame-duck idea • Many presidents tend to not get as much done their 2 nd term – Not worried about the re-election – Benefits: • Expense accounts • Residence in White House • Travel and entertainment funds • Superb health care • Lifetime pension • Yacht • Air Force One • Fleet of automobiles • Secret Service Protection Bill Clinton is responsible for making the President’s salary $400, 00

Presidential Election Electoral College • Alexander Hamilton – Suggested a compromise solution • Called the Electoral College – People selected from each state who gather and vote for the President and Vice President • Electors = total number of senator and representatives from each state – Would cast separate votes for President and Vice President • • One with the most votes would be President Second would be Vice President – House of Representatives would vote for President in case of tie – Senate would vote for Vice President in case of tie

Presidential Selection Election of 1800 12 th Amendment • At first: Electoral College • House of Representatives – Worked great • George Washington won unanimously by electors • 1800 – Political parties are formed • Federalist v. Democratic Republicans • Democratic – Republicans had the majority – Jefferson and Burr received the exact number of votes – Had to break the tie • 36 vote ballot – Jefferson – President – Burr – Vice President – Created tension between the President and Vice President • Competitive edge kicks in • 12 th amendment added – Electors cast separate for President and Vice President – Electors meets with respective states • Eliminates manipulation

12 th Amendment • The 12 th Amendment – Requires separate electoral ballots for the president and vice president The Story: This was created because, during the election of 1800 Thomas Jefferson & Aaron Burr were going against the federalists, Jefferson & Burr won, but they each received 73 electoral votes and the House of Representatives had to re vote 35 times until on the 36 th ballot Jefferson won. This happened because during that time the 2 people that got the highest votes were President and Vice President, even if they were in different political parties. • The Twelfth Amendment (Amendment XII) – Provides the procedure by which the President and Vice President are elected. It replaced the procedure of the Electoral College under Article II, Section 1, Clause 3, which demonstrated problems in the elections of 1796 and 1800. – The Twelfth Amendment was proposed by the Congress on December 9, 1803 and was ratified by the requisite number of state legislatures on June 15, 1804.

Presidential Selection • The Electoral College Today – Electors choose the President • Electors are selected by the political parties – we vote in the people who make up the political party – Assume people associated with a party, would vote for that party – Electoral ballots are sealed and sent to the President of the Senate • Counted • To become President or Vice President – 270 electoral votes are needed – Votes are casted on the first Monday after the second Monday in December • Formal announcement of results comes during a joint session of Congress on January 6

The Electoral College Today • Criticisms – Representation of states • A candidate could win the election if he/she wins 11 big states – That means he/she lost in 39 other states – Popular Vote • The person who wins the popular vote, may not win the Presidency – Electoral College is a winner -take all system – You could win the Presidency without winning the popular vote – Has happened 5 times » Most recently in 2000 (Al Gore v. George Bush) » 1824 -1876 -1888 other times

Presidential Selection • Can We Change the Electoral College? – Yes but very difficult • Need an amendment supported by Congress and state legislatures • Go through the Constitutional amendment process Why change anything if there is little flaws in it?