Thet U.S. Government System

THE U.S.
GOVERNMENT SYSTEM
If you want to know how the U.S. government works, you need to
understand the history of the United States. It all starts with
the Constitution, which the founding fathers wrote in 1787. The
Constitution breaks down the government into the Legislative,
Executive, and Judicial branches.
A Dream of Fairness and Equality
When the founding fathers designed the United States government,
they considered how they would make sure that it would work well.
Their first goal was to design a government that would be fair and
equal.
It was not easy! The first time they tried, the government was too weak
because there was no one who could make sure that people would
follow the laws. The government could make laws, but no one had to
follow them.
The Branches of Government
The Constitution was written to fix the problem and make sure the U.S.
government works. Its first duty was to make a fair government. They
did that by making three branches of government: one to make the
laws, one to enforce them, and one to judge them.
History taught them that making any one of these branches too
powerful caused big problems, so they set up rules where any branch
could be checked by the other two branches. This creates a balance
between the branches. We call this the system of checks and
balances.
There are many parts of the government. Think of a tree with three
large branches. These are the three main branches of the government.
But each of these tree branches has even smaller branches. Let’s look
at the three main branches of the U.S. government.
The Legislative Branch
The United States is a representative democracy. In this kind of
government, a few people out of everyone in the country are elected to
make laws for all of us. In the United States, this group is called the
U.S. Congress, or the Legislative Branch.
Congress is made up of two parts: the House of Representatives and
the Senate. The House of Representatives has 435 voting members
divided between all 50 states. States with more people get more
representatives, and the numbers get changed every 10 years.
The Senate only has 100 members, two per state. If the country got a
new state, there would be two more senators. The last time a state
was added to the United States was over 60 years ago, but there are
two places that may become states soon: Puerto Rico and Washington
D.C.
The Executive Branch
The Executive Branch makes sure that everyone follows the laws that
Congress makes. The President is the head of the Executive Branch
and also is our Head of State. When the President talks with leaders in
other countries, he represents all of America.
The President is elected by citizens who live in the United States and
is helped by his Cabinet, a group of people with big responsibilities.
They handle the day-to-day work of running the U.S. government. The
President is in charge of bigger problems and guiding the country.
The Judicial Branch
The third branch of the United States government is the Judicial
Branch. The Judicial Branch is there to make sure that the laws and
the way they’re enforced agree with the Constitution. They are much
like referees in a sport and help keep our laws fair and equal.
At the top of the Judicial Branch is the Supreme Court. Their job is to
understand the Constitution very well and make decisions when law
conflicts with the Constitution. These decisions affect everyone in the
country.
The Supreme Court also decides whether something that either
Congress or the President does is legal.
Checks and Balances
Each of these three branches, the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial,
can keep the others from getting too powerful through the checks and
balances written in the Constitution. Here is just one example that
shows how the U.S. government works:
Once Congress goes through its process for making a new law, it
doesn’t become law until it goes to the President. The President has
the power to veto the law. This means that they don’t agree with it. A
law doesn’t become real until the President signs it.
Congress could fix the law or give up. But they also have the power to
override the veto if they can get a lot of people in Congress to vote for
the bill. If they override the veto, then the law becomes real and the
President must enforce it.
Let’s say the law is an unfair one though. One of us could go to the
Judicial Branch and tell them the law is unfair. Through a long process,
the Supreme Court might look at the law and agree that it’s unfair.
They can strike down the law, which means it’s no longer a law
anymore.
Changing the Constitution
The Constitution has our most important rules about how our
government works, including rules about who can become a U.S.
citizen, but they can be changed. These changes are called
amendments. Right now, 27 amendments have passed.
The first ten amendments were passed soon after the Constitution was
made. These ten are called the Bill of Rights. They protect many of our
freedoms, like the freedom of speech, the freedom to practice religion,
and our right to fair trials in court.
The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution are summarized
below.
1 Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.
2 Right to keep and bear arms in order to maintain a well regulated militia.
3 No quartering of soldiers.
4 Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.
5 Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination, double

jeopardy.
6 Rights of accused persons, e.g., right to a speedy and public trial.
7 Right of trial by jury in civil cases.
8 Freedom from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments.
9 Other rights of the people.
10 Powers reserved to the state

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW
ELECTIONS AND THE ELECTORAL PROCESS
Federal elections are held in November of even-numbered years. Just

as the President, Senators, and Representatives have overlapping
constituencies, their terms also overlap
. • All Representatives are elected every two years by the voters of the
district they represent. • Senators serve six-year terms, with onethird of
them up for election every even year. Senators are chosen in
statewide elections and represent all residents of their states.
• The President and Vice President are elected together every four
years in a nationwide election. The election process begins well in
advance of the actual election as individuals declare their candidacies
for offi ce. In the congressional election process, if more than one
candidate from the same party seeks the offi ce, a primary election is
held to determine which candidate will be on the ballot in the general
election. The primary process for presidential elections is different from
congressional elections. Beginning in January and lasting through
June of the election year, states hold presidential primaries or
caucuses. The results of these ballots determine how many delegates
will represent each respective candidate at the national party
nominating conventions, which are usually held in July or August.
These political conventions are where each party’s nominee is actually
selected. In the general election in November, Senators and
Representatives are elected by plurality vote—the candidate receiving
the most votes wins, even if it is not a majority. In presidential
elections, each state is allocated a number of electoral votes equal to
the sum of U.S. Representatives and Senators for that state. The
District of Columbia, though not a state, has three electoral votes. The
presidential candidate who wins the popular vote in a state “wins” that
state’s electoral votes, usually in a winnertake-all manner. After
elections in each state are certifi ed, the electoral votes won by each
candidate are counted. If a candidate receives a majority of the
electoral votes (at least 270 of the 538 total), he or she is declared the
winner. If no candidate wins a majority of electoral votes, the U.S.
House of Representatives chooses the winner, with each state
delegation having one vote. Because the President is not elected
directly by the people, it is possible for a candidate to receive a
plurality of the popular vote and yet lose the election.
POLITICAL PARTIES
There are two major national political parties in the United States: the
Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Together with minor
parties, these organizations are an important part of the American
system of government. Political parties recruit candidates for public
offi ce and help raise funds for political campaigns. Other activities
include:
• Conducting voter education programs
• Conducting issue and opinion research
• Providing information about government offi cials and activities. The
minor political parties also provide organized opposition to those in
power, placing an additional check on government power.

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THE U.S.

1 Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.

4 Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.

5 Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination, double

6 Rights of accused persons, e.g., right to a speedy and public trial.

7 Right of trial by jury in civil cases.

8 Freedom from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments.

9 Other rights of the people.

10 Powers reserved to the state

ELECTIONS AND THE ELECTORAL PROCESS

Federal elections are held in November of even-numbered years. Just

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