The fixed election day took farmers’ needs into account
Americans will vote for their next president on Tuesday., Nov. 5.
But why are presidential elections always on Tuesdays?
Because in January 1845, Congress passed the Presidential Election Day Act, which declared the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November as Election Day across the country.
Prior to that law, states could hold elections at any time within 34 days of the first Wednesday in December. That system posed problematic, however, because states that held early votes could influence later votes in other states.
Voting on the first Tuesday after the first Monday also helped avoid conflicts with All Saints Day, which falls on Nov. 1.
In addition, the first of each month was typically reserved for bookkeeping for the previous month.
But why did Congress choose Tuesdays as the election day?
Because farmers.
Congress didn’t want to “disenfranchise” the farming population, said Jessica Linker, an assistant professor in history at Northeastern University. “They were aware that they had to call it at a time when it was not a difficulty to go to the polls.”
About 90 of every 100 Americans during the 1800s lived on a farm, and traveling to vote could take up to a day.
A Tuesday vote meant farmers could travel on Monday, vote on Tuesday and be back on Wednesday, which was market day for most farmers.
Fridays and weekends were considered days of worship. And a vote on Thursday would’ve meant farmers had to travel on Wednesday instead of selling goods at market.
But why did Congress settle on November? And not May, or August?
Again, farmers.
“Spring was planting season, and, in the fall, farmers were busy with crops right until harvest time,” Franchesca Ramsey explains in a History Channel video. “And winter weather made travel more difficult. So early November seemed the obvious choice.”
For information on how, when, and where to vote, visit USA.gov.
And visit Farms.com for a summary on how Kamala Harris and Donald Trump each view U.S. ag.