Election facts for kids

Today, an election in Germany is picking one of several options (or candidates). The notice tells voters to "fold each ballot paper several times and hand it in separately".

Each folded paper is dropped into a box.

An election is a way people can choose their candidate or their preferences in a representative democracy or other form of government.

Most democratic countries hold new elections for their national legislature every few years. What elections do is select representatives for the local areas. These are called MPs (Members of Parliament) in the British parliamentary system. Parliamentary systems may have a head of government and a head of state, but sometimes the two posts are held by the same person.

The legislature chooses the government, usually by majority vote in the legislature. Some democracies elect a president, who then selects the government. Many democratic countries also have regional, provincial or state elections.

There are different ways to organize an election in different countries. Voters might vote for an individual, or they might vote for a political party (party list). This is because different countries use different voting systems.

Countries that are not democracies can also hold elections. This is usually done to let the people choose a local representative (like a mayor). Also many countries call themselves democracies, but behind the scenes have a more autocratic form of government.

Elections keep a democratic country functioning, as they give people the right to select their own government. However, there are ways a government can "fix" elections. Opposition candidates are permitted in former USSR countries, but they are usually prevented from using broadcasting or the newspapers. This means that, in effect, the ruling president is never challenged. Elections which are fixed are sometimes called sham elections or show elections.

Psephology is the study of elections.

Images for kids

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  A ballot box used in France

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  Roman coin depicting election

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  A British election campaign leaflet with an illustration of an example ballot paper, 1880

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  Picture about the 1946 presidential election, when the parliament of Finland elected prime minister J. K. Paasikivi to succeed the resigning Mannerheim as new president with 159 votes.

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  Campaigners working on posters in Milan, Italy, 2004

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  Buenos Aires 1892: "The rival voters were kept back by an armed force of police out of sight to others. Only batches of two or three were allowed to enter the polling-office at a time. Armed sentries guarded the gates and the doors." (Godefroy Durand, The Graphic, 21 May 1892).

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  Few US states check results

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  A ballot from the 1936 elections in Nazi Germany.

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  A ballot from the 1938 elections in Nazi Germany asking voters to approve the new Reichstag and the Anschluss. The "no" box was made significantly smaller than the "yes" box.

See also

In Spanish: Elecciones para niños