The 46th president of the United States of America is set to be announced – like it or not – so, as a way to take our mind off the nail-biting anxiety of this close race, here is a look at some of the more interesting facts around the American presidential elections.
1. What do you need to be president? The requirements to be considered for an American presidential candidate, outside of the billions of dollars for the campaign, include being 35-years-old or older, a permanent resident of the United States for at least 14 years, and a natural-born citizen.
2. Who were the oldest and youngest presidents? The youngest elected president was John F Kennedy at 43 years old, with Donald Trump the oldest first-term president at 70 years. This election will determine the oldest American president in history with Trump aged 74 and Joe Biden 77 years.
3. What’s the strangest voting location? American astronauts have been able to vote from outer space since 1997. Their ballots, in PDF form, are emailed back to earth, opened as encoded documents and then clerks submit the hard copy of the ballot to be counted.
4. Who’s the only non-elected vice-president and president? Gerald Ford – when Spiro Agnew resigned, the then president Richard Nixon used the 25th amendment to appoint Ford as vice-president (without an election). Only nine months later, Nixon resigned amid the Watergate scanda
and Ford, being vice-president, became president of the United States. 
5. When is the US election held? Back in 1845, the American Congress set the day for presidential elections as the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The reasoning behind this was that citizens could observe the Sabbath, travel on Monday, vote on Tuesday.
6. What about the women? Although the United States is yet to have a woman president, Hillary Clinton was the first woman to win the nomination for a major party. However, way back in 1872, 48 years before women were allowed to vote in presidential elections, Victoria Woodhull (leader of the Suffragette movement) ran for president.
7. What’s with the donkey and elephant? The two major American parties – the Democratic Party and the Republican Party (also known as the ‘Grand Old Party’ or ‘GOP’ for short) – are represented by two animals; the donkey and the elephant respectively, dating back to the 19th century. Votes are still being tallied, but it’s likely the 2020 US elections – held amid a pandemic in the world’s leading country in Covid-19 infections and death – is set to take some time yet. Watch this space!
HAVE YOUR SAY
Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.
For news straight to your phone invite us:
WhatsApp – 060 784 2695 Instagram – zululand_observer
