5-21 The Executive Branch

The Executive Branch of government carries out the laws created by the Legislative Branch.  It is the job of the Executive Branch to enforce the laws of our government.  If Congress passes a law that the speed limit shall be 80 mph, and the President signs the law, the Executive Branch must enforce the law.

The head of the Executive Branch is the President.  Many thousands of people work in the Executive Branch.  The President is the chief executive and he or she is elected for a four-year term.  The second-in-command is the Vice President.  Both offices are elected at the same time.  The President and Vice President are elected by the Electoral College.  The Electoral College is comprised of men and women from each state.  Each state has a certain number of electors.  The number of electors each state has is determined by the total number of Representatives and Senators each state has in Congress.

Every four years, people go to the polls to elect a President and Vice President.  The votes are tallied and the electors take these totals and elect a President at the Electoral College.  It is possible for the people to cast more votes for one candidate and the Electoral College could vote a different candidate the President of the United States.  When our fore fathers wrote the U.S. Constitution, it was felt the common folks were poorly educated and uninformed.  The Electoral College was originally established to prevent the common folks from making a mistake and electing a disastrous leader.  Today, it is believed by many people that the Electoral College should be removed from the U.S. Constitution and the President should be elected by the popular vote of the people.

The President must be a natural-born citizen of the United States.  He or she can not be born a citizen of another country.  He or she must be 35 years old and a resident of the United States for at least 14 years.  The President and Vice President are elected the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.  They are sworn in on Inauguration Day, January 20th.

Complete the questions below.

The head of the Executive Branch is the .

The President is the chief executive and he or she is elected for a -year term.

It is the job of the Executive Branch or the to enforce the laws of our government.

The second-in-command is the .

The President and Vice President are elected by the .

The number of each state has is determined by the total number of Representatives and Senators each state has in Congress.

The people elect the President every years.

The was originally established to prevent the common folks from making a mistake and electing a disastrous leader.

The President must be a natural-born of the United States.

He or she must be years old and a resident of the United States for at least years.

Inauguration Day is held on January th.