Why is Election Day in November? And on a Tuesday?
MINNEAPOLIS – It's that time of year when Americans exercise an important right – collectively on the same day.
We wanted to know: Why is Election Day in November? And why is it on a Tuesday? Good Question. WCCO's Jeff Wagner explains how necessity became tradition.
On the fourth Thursday of November, a grand feast is had for many Americans. But often on the first Tuesday of the month, a civic duty is exercised, when citizens bubble in their choices to lead their city, county, state and country.
Why is Election Day held in November? Look no further than the fields across the Midwest. Farming was a key influence. In our country's early years, the government didn't want Election Day to interfere with planting in the spring or harvest in the early fall.
But it couldn't be too late in the year in case of harsh winter weather. Can you imagine your horse and carriage getting stuck in a blizzard? That's how we landed on November.
But what about the day? Why on a Tuesday? Well again, farmers, but also religion. It took people in rural areas roughly a day to travel into town to vote. That means Monday wouldn't work as Election Day since it would require voters to travel on Sunday, which is the sabbath for Christians.
Wednesday was typically market day, when farmers sold their crops in town, so that wouldn't work either.
Tuesday was best, allowing Monday to be the travel day without interfering with market day.
But it couldn't be too early in the month. It had to be the first Tuesday after the first Monday. Lawmakers didn't want Election Day falling on Nov. 1 because the first of the month was often when merchants were busy tallying up their books from the previous month. That's why this year, Election Day is on Nov. 8.
All those rules became official in 1845. Before that, states held federal elections whenever they wanted, so long as it was within at 34-day period before the first Wednesday in December – the day when state electors met to cast their votes for president and vice president.
That method had flaws. Early voting results in one state could impact how people voted in a different state that voted later. Designating an official day countrywide helped prevent people from manipulating an election's outcome.