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Why are the US elections always the same day of the week?
The initial legislation still comes from the government of the first president, George Washington, in 1792, and dictated that the election for the presidency should take place one of the 34 days before the first Wednesday in December, each state can define its date. own.
However, with the invention of the telegraph, in 1835, and with the development of the locomotive, communications became easier.
With the new spectrum of possibilities for transferring knowledge and information between states, the United States Congress approved a new law that aimed to prevent the result of a previous vote from influencing posthumous votes due to the delay in the days in which the electoral act.
It is in this context that the current law of Congress arises, which dates from 1845 and declares “Election Day” for the entire United States “on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November.”
Why Tuesday?
Tuesday’s election took into account that it would take people, on average, about 1 day to get to the polling place. Therefore, it was imperative to maintain a 2-day window for people to vote and return to their workplaces.
Both Saturday and Sunday were days of fulfillment of the religious obligations of the different beliefs (celebrations and masses), so weekends were excluded, both Friday and Monday – due to the already explained need to save 2 days for the trip. to and from the polling place.
On the other hand, Wednesday was traditionally a “market day”, the day reserved for farmers to sell their products, as if it were a fair day. Which prevented Thursday from being the chosen day (due to the need to always have a travel day).
Thus, due to all these inconveniences, and so that more people could vote, Tuesday was considered the ideal day of the week, allowing anyone who needed to travel on foot or by cart to do so, starting the journey. Monday.
Why November?
In 1845, despite the beginning of industrial development, the United States of America remained a predominantly agrarian society. Therefore, it was necessary to take into account the rural world when choosing a day for the elections.
Let’s analyze the seasons then.
Late fall and winter would be a poor choice, as rain and cold would prevent people from making the long crossing to the polling place. However, in the spring and summer they planted, worked and harvested on the plantations, therefore, people would not want to leave them for 2 days.
The middle of autumn, on the other hand, would be an almost perfect choice, since at the beginning of November the agricultural work would be more oriented and the winter rains would not yet be avoided.
Why the first Tuesday after the first Monday?
The idea was to prevent an election day from reaching November 1, All Saints’ Day, which is a day of celebrations in various religions, such as Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox (that is, even in years where November 1 falls on a Tuesday, it means that the last Monday was October – October 31 – and the first Monday in November will only be the following week; since it is stipulated that the elections are held on the first Tuesday in November after the first Monday in November, the gap between religious holiday and election is guaranteed).
Research and text by João Maldonado
