elections

Elections are processes through which eligible voters select candidates for public office or decide ballot measures. After ballots are cast, election officials count and certify the results. Public elections generally include general elections, which occur on a regular schedule, and special elections, which are held outside that schedule when necessary; for example, to fill a vacant office or decide a referendum.

Congressional Elections

The U.S. Constitution gives states substantial responsibility for administering elections while also giving Congress authority to regulate federal elections. Under Article I, Section 4, the states establish the times, places, and manner of congressional elections, subject to congressional regulation. As a result, election laws and procedures vary among states, including rules governing registration, voting methods, early voting, absentee or mail voting, and election administration. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have always been elected by The People. Senators, however, were originally chosen by state legislatures. The Seventeenth Amendment established the direct popular election of U.S. Senators when it was ratified in 1913.

Presidential Elections and the Electoral College

Under Article II, Section 1, each state appoints a number of presidential electors equal to its total number of senators and representatives. The Twenty-Third Amendment provides three electors for the District of Columbia. The total number of electors is currently 538, and 270 electoral votes are required to win a majority. In presidential elections, voters in each state generally vote for a presidential and vice-presidential ticket, while the formal constitutional process involves the appointment of electors. Political parties in each state generally select slates of potential electors pledged to their nominees. The electors subsequently meet in their respective states and cast separate votes for President and Vice President. Congress then counts the electoral votes. 

Most states use a winner-take-all system, under which the candidate receiving the most votes statewide receives all of the state's electoral votes. Maine and Nebraska use a district-based system: two electors are awarded to the statewide winner, while one elector is awarded to the winner of each congressional district. There is no constitutional provision or federal law requiring electors to vote according to their state's popular vote. However, many states impose requirements on electors, and the U.S. Supreme Court held in Chiafalo v. Washington, 591 U.S. 578 (2020) that states may enforce such requirements. Currently 38 states and the District of Columbia require electors to vote for their pledged candidate, although the specific requirements and penalties may vary.

The Electoral College winner has not always been the candidate who received the most votes nationwide. Presidential candidates who won the Electoral College while losing the national popular vote include John Quincy Adams in 1824, Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876, Benjamin Harrison in 1888, George W. Bush in 2000, and Donald Trump in 2016. The 1824 election differed from the later examples because no candidate received an Electoral College majority, so the House of Representatives selected the President. See also: Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000).

Constitutional Amendments and Federal Voting Laws

Seven constitutional amendments address voting or the electoral process directly:

  • Twelfth Amendment (1804): Established separate Electoral College votes for President and Vice President and provided procedures for contingent elections when no candidate receives an Electoral College majority.
  • Fourteenth Amendment (1868): Established equal-protection guarantees and addressed voting rights in its provisions concerning representation and disenfranchisement. 
  • Fifteenth Amendment (1870): Prohibited denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
  • Nineteenth Amendment (1920): Prohibited denying or abridging the right to vote on account of sex.
  • Twenty-Third Amendment (1961): Granted the District of Columbia electoral votes in presidential elections.
  • Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1964): Prohibited poll taxes in federal elections.
  • Twenty-Sixth Amendment (1971): Prohibited denying or abridging the right to vote on account of age for citizens who are 18 or older. 

Voting Rights Act of 1965

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) is a federal law prohibiting various forms of voter discrimination in elections. Among other provisions, it eliminated the use of literacy tests and established federal protections for minority voters. Section 2 requires certain covered jurisdictions to provide election-related materials and assistance in certain minority languages when federal coverage criteria are met. Section 5 established a federal preclearance requirement for jurisdictions covered by the criteria established in Section 4(b). Covered jurisdictions generally had to obtain federal approval before implementing changes to voting practices or procedures. In Shelby County v. Holder, 570 U.S. 529 (2013), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the criteria for determining which jurisdictions were covered under Section 4(b) was unconstitutional, preventing Section 5 from functioning unless Congress adopted new criteria for determining jurisdictional coverage. 

Campaign Finance Reform

The Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) of 1971 strengthened disclosure requirements and established a federal system for regulating campaign finance. Congress substantially amended FECA in 1974, including the establishment of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which began operating in 1975. In Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld limits on contributions to federal candidates and disclosure requirements but struck down several limits on expenditures, including limits on candidates' personal spending, as unconstitutional restrictions on free speech.

The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA), also known as McCain-Feingold, amended FECA and regulated "electioneering communications" including certain broadcast, cable, and satellite communications that refer to a clearly identified federal candidate and are distributed within 30 days of a primary or 60 days of a general election. 

The U.S. Supreme Court largely upheld the BCRA's restrictions on corporate and union-funded electioneering communications in McConnell v. FEC, 540 U.S. 93 (2003). Subsequent decisions either limited or invalidated portions of those restrictions.

  • In FEC v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc., 551 U.S. 449 (2007), the Court held that certain issue-related political advertisements were protected from the BCRA's electioneering communication restrictions when they did not explicitly advocate for or against a particular candidate.
  • In Davis v. FEC, 554 U.S. 724 (2008), the Court invalidated the BCRA's "Millionaire's Amendment" imposing different contribution rules on candidates facing opponents who substantially financed their own campaigns.
  • The Court held that under the First Amendment, corporations or labor unions could not be prohibited from using general treasury funds for independent political expenditures or electioneering communications in Citizens United v. FEC, 558 U.S. 310 (2010).
  • In FEC v. Ted Cruz for Senate, 596 U.S. 289 (2022) the Court struck down a BCRA provision limiting the amount of post-election contributions that could be used to repay certain candidate loans. The Court held that the restriction burdened candidates' political speech by making self-financing less attractive. 

Additional Laws on Voting and Access

Federal law provides protections and voting assistance for certain military and overseas voters, as well as accessibility requirements for elderly and disabled voters. The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984 requires polling places for federal elections to be accessible to elderly and disabled voters, subject to limited exceptions. The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act of 1986 (UOCAVA) establishes voting protections for eligible members of the military, their families, and U.S. citizens residing overseas. The National Voter Registration Act of 1993, commonly known as the "Motor Voter" Act, expanded voter-registration opportunities, including registration through state motor-vehicle agencies.

COVID-19 and Recent State Voting Law Trends

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted many states to modify election procedures, including rules concerning absentee and mail-in voting, early voting, ballot collection, and polling-place operations. These changes were followed by continued debate at the state level, and legislation regarding voting access, election administration, and election security.

In 2025, state legislatures enacted at least 32 restrictive voting laws and at least 30 expansive voting laws. From January 2025 through April 2026, states enacted a total of 44 restrictive voting laws, surpassing the previous two-year high of 43. Through the first part of 2026, at least nine states had enacted 12 restrictive laws, while six states had enacted 16 expansive laws. 

Recent state election legislation has addressed issues including voter registration, voting by mail, voter identification requirements, election administration, ballot processing, election security, and the use of artificial intelligence and digitally forged media in political communications. Because these laws vary substantially by state and continue to change, current state statutes and election authorities should be consulted for specific requirements. For additional information, see the Brennan Center’s 2026 State Voting Laws Roundup.

Recent Judicial Developments

Recent Supreme Court decisions have continued to shape federal election law. In Louisiana v. Callais, 608 U.S. __ (2026), the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed Louisiana's congressional redistricting plan and the relationship between Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. In this case, the Court ultimately held that Section 2 did not require Louisiana to create an additional majority-minority congressional district, affirming the lower court's decision that the challenged map was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The Court also limited the circumstances for evaluating certain Section 2 redistricting claims.

See also: Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 11 - Federal Elections, 52 U.S.C. - Voting and Elections, and the U.S. Constitution Annotated:

State Voter Information

Additional References and Resources

[Last reviewed in September of 2026 by the Wex Definitions Team]