With the 2024 Presidential Election approaching, there are several important factors to understand.
As every registered individual completes their ballot on or before Nov. 5, they are contributing to the electoral votes and the value their state holds within the election. Each state contains a “certain number of electors based on its representation in Congress,” or an electoral college. With a total of 538 electors selected throughout the country, each elector “casts one vote following the general election, and the candidate who gets more than half (270) wins.” The presidential candidate with the most votes within each state receives the electoral votes for this location, and ultimately wins the state — the candidate who obtains 270 votes earns the title of president-elect.
While this is a major way that votes for the election are determined, battleground states are critical to the outcome. A battleground state, or swing state, is a state in which a presidential candidate cannot count on winning, for it is unclear which party its residents will ultimately endorse, according to U.S. News. The populations within these states are closely divided politically. Candidates will target these with campaign visits, advertising and staffing in determination to earn their vital vote. For this year’s election, the battleground states have been recognized as Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Throughout the country, each ballot holds the power to determine a state’s stance and influence the future.
The group of battleground states may change over the years due to factors such as changing demographics and turnout, but they tend to remain similar during each presidential election cycle. With nineteen electoral votes, the highest number among swing states and fifth-most overall, Pennsylvania is a key battleground state the candidates yearn to acquire. Former President Donald Trump’s win there in 2016 broke the Democratic streak of securing the state. Four years later, however, President Joe Biden was able to regain Pennsylvania, creating a “blue wall” that also included crucial states Michigan and Wisconsin, granting him access to the White House. With 10 of the past 12 presidential election winners having procured this state, it proves to hold much value.
Pennsylvania, among similar states, may experience delays in finalizing their results for the upcoming election due to a recent law limiting when mail votes can be completed. Therefore, processing of the votes will not begin until 7 a.m. that day. Leigh Chapman, Pennsylvania’s acting secretary of state, credited this expected delay to the state’s General Assembly, who decided not to pass legislation in order to allow counties to begin processing mail-in ballots before Election Day. During the presidential election in 2020, the vote count lasted for days. Chapman asks for patience as voters must expect to wait the same duration after this upcoming Election Day, Nov. 5, to find out who won the pivotal swing state. As a high-stakes state, Pennsylvania’s counters will take their time to be precise and make sure the votes are accurately counted.
The official president-elect of the United States will be announced days after the election, having collected the required electoral votes ahead of their opposing candidate. Throughout the country, each ballot holds the power to determine a state’s stance and influence the future.
rross1@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @GCrownPolitics, X
