At stake in this election:  

• The office of President and Vice President of the United States of America 

Elections for the Senate and the House of Representatives are occurring concurrently.  

Description of government structure:  

• Chief of State: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001) 

• Head of Government: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001) 

• Assembly: bicameral Congress with 100-seat Senate and 435-seat House of Representatives. 

Note: The U.S. has a Vice President, elected jointly with the President, who serves as a second-in-command and the President of the United States Senate.   

Description of electoral system:  

• The President is indirectly elected by majority vote of electors in the Electoral College. Each state receives Electoral College votes equal to its two senators plus the number of seats it has in the House of Representatives. D.C. has no representation in the Senate and is represented by a delegate in the House; it receives three electoral votes. Political parties each nominate a slate of electors to represent their presidential candidate.  On election day, voters select a presidential candidate, thus selecting which slate of electors will cast their votes.  The President is elected to a 4-year term.  

• All 100 members of the Senate are generally elected by plurality vote in single-seat constituencies. They are elected to 6-year terms.  

• All 435 members of the House of Representatives are generally elected by plurality vote in single-seat constituencies. They are elected to 2-year terms. 

Main Candidates in the Presidential race: 

• George W. Bush  

• • Party: Republic Party 

• John Kerry  

• • Party: Democratic Party 

• Ralph Nader  

• • Party: Reform Party 

• Michael Badnarik   

• • Party: Libertarian Party 

Last Election:  

• The last presidential election was held on 7 November 2000. George W. Bush was elected president with 271 Electoral College votes, defeating Al Gore, who finished with 267.  

Population and number of registered voters: 

• Population: 292,805,298 (2004) 

• Registered Voters: 142,070,000 (2004) 

Gender Data: 

·         Female Population: 148,116,767 (2004) 

·         Is United States a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980) 

·         Has United States ratified CEDAW: No 

·         Gender Quota: No 

·         Female candidates in this election: No 

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 5 (Senate); 65 (House) following the 2004 elections 

·         Human Development Index Position: 8 (2014)