" If anyone still has doubts that America is a place where anything is possible, if anyone still wonders whether he is alive in our day the dream of our fathers, even if it is put into question the power of our democracy, tonight you have your answer "
This was the first words spoken by the future President of the United States after the first reliable data of election day results.
Barack Obama, in fact, has not yet been elected to the highest position in the U.S.: This step will take place Dec. 15 to vote by 538 "large elettori”.
Ma andiamo con ordine: chi sono i grandi elettori?
Durante l’election day il popolo statunitense non elegge direttamente il Presidente, ma esprime semplicemente la propria preferenza per un candidato piuttosto che per un altro. Ad ogni candidato alla presidenza, in ogni singolo stato della federazione, corrispondono un certo numero di grandi elettori.
Il candidato che vince, anche per un solo voto, in uno Stato, si aggiudica tutti i grandi elettori di quello Stato a lui collegati.
Ogni Stato, a prescindere dalla grandezza, ha diritto ad almeno due grandi elettori a cui va aggiunto, però, un numero pari a quello dei deputati che saranno inviati alla Camera dei rappresentanti (quest’ultimo chosen according to population).
Considering that the electors will vote for their candidate of reference, the latter must be able to provide at least 270 (at 538).
Barack Obama has won 349 electors while John McCain 163 (two States have not yet been allocated or 26 electors).
Sometimes it may happen that while the percentage of the total votes received is highest, the electors are allocated in the minority or vice versa.
This depends on whether the candidate has won many small states and a few of those who attribute the large number of electors, so the sum of the percentage turns out to be significant, but in Basically, you do not have enough "strength" to be elected.
The election day is obviously an important day not just for Americans but for the whole world in view of the political and economic weight of U.S.
It is fixed, traditionally on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of the month November.
This has a logical organization of American society dating from 1845.
First, the selection of the month: November is the period in which they work less land, and since then the company was mainly agricultural, that was the month most suitable by virtue of the fact that citizens who lived in rural areas would have to miss entire days of work to move into town and exercise their right to vote.
You chose also not to place the election day on the first day of the week since the previous day (Sunday) was devoted to religious services and these could not be followed if you had to go in cities for the voting, and so you chose the first Tuesday of the month, but the problem arose that it could also correspond with the festicità of All Saints and then to avoid this kind of situation, we opted for the first Tuesday after first Monday in November.
And speaking of the customs and traditions, it is necessary to emphasize that the initial predictions also suggest the so-called "fortress States" or states which, historically, are likely to vote for Republicans rather than Democrats or vice versa.
This year, however, there have been cases in which the Member stronghold turned out to be opposite to the weather: it happened for example with North Carolina and Virginia since 1964 had never been assigned to the Democrats, that occurred during these elections.
This year however, as it is about fifty years from now, voters who wins the great state of Ohio, becomes President of the USA
Obviously these are not da considerarsi vere e proprie statistiche, ma semplicemente delle osservazioni su dati di fatto.
Da sottolineare, inoltre, che dal 1928 non si assisteva ad un’elezione in cui nessun candidato godesse del vantaggio dell’ “incubency”, cioè del fatto di essere vice-presidente o presidente uscente. I maggiori partiti hanno scelto i loro candidati ex-novo.
A dispetto di tutte le tradizioni elencate finora, la campagna elettorale statunitense non è certo una delle più tradizionali al mondo.
Caratteristica principale del periodo precedente all’election day è senza alcun dubbio la partecipazione popolare. È facile notare as, in fact, the people really feel involved in supporting their candidate and what does not happen only with demonstrations of "affection", but also with real gifts of money or gadgets with the purchase of products from the same candidate in order to finance part of the campaign.
The participation of the people also demonstrated in the numbers the polls. Suffice it to say that this year voted for 64.1% of those eligible, a percentage that would hardly be achieved, for example, in Italy, for a vote took place on Tuesday.
This is the largest percentage of the last century when it reached 65.7% share. The increase occurred
this year is due, above all, the candidacy of Barack Obama that attracted to itself for 95% of the votes of African-Americans and led to a substantial number of young people to the polls.
In some states, the vote will take place with a traditional system, while in others with an electronic system.
Some states, however, have decided to abandon the latter system because the votes were likely to be lost in case of failure of electronic devices.
We have moved, therefore, a mixed system with reading and vote on paper ballot voting through electronic system to make faster the counting, but here too there have been various problems caused by the jam of about seven hundred machines.
There is therefore some difficulty in choosing the best voting system.
Even the traditional one, in fact, create problems as the data appear to be complex and this leads to an obvious difficulty in the act of voting. To demonstrate this, in the various seats are distributed brochures explaining in detail how to vote to decrease the maximum errors of the voters.
Cade then the myth of American democracy closer to perfection.
This observation stems from the lack of clarity in the meantime the voting system used, but also by the fact that You can also vote before the end of the campaign. The election day, in fact, represents the last possible day in which to vote and not the only one. Furthermore, there are fixed locations for the election: because they can occur in schools, churches, or even department stores.
Some criticism also stems from the fact that the candidate who exceeds the other even a single vote, wins all the electors of the state in question and not in proportion to votes received.
This represents a serious democratic deficit.
Beyond any possible criticism and protest, it is impossible deny that the U.S. elections are, without doubt, one of the most eagerly awaited around the world.
This is because it is now undeniable that the U.S. has reached such an economic, political and social nature which is very difficult to ignore a series of changes to the hierarchy.
Returning to the initial sentence uttered by Obama (who will take office at the White House January 20, 2009), this election appears to have, in effect, the right to become part of history because it is the first time that a black man is elected President of the United States.
In this regard, remembers the words spoken Bob Kennedy: "Forty America will have a president of African-American. " It was the spring of 1968, exactly four decades ago.
In addition to the various electoral programs that we know, are regularly put aside, the only thing to do, right now, and I wish Barack Obama could be handled with the necessary self-control , the great American political machine.
(the sources are not mentioned as many and varied)
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