A presidential election is the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

of any

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

whose official title is

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Elections by country

Albania

The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public.

Chile

The president of Chile is elected by the Chilean people for a four-year term. Sitting presidents are not allowed to run for reelection, but former presidents may do so.

China

The

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

and

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, are elected by the

National People's Congress The National People's Congress (NPC) is the highest organ of state power of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The NPC is the only branch of government in China, and per the principle of unified power, all state organs from the Sta ...

(NPC) on the nomination of the NPC Presidium. In practice, the presidential candidate is chosen through an informal process within the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

(CCP), which is headed by the

CCP general secretary The general secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party ( zh, s=中国共产党中央委员会总书记, p=Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Zǒngshūjì) is the leader of the Chinese Communist Party ...

. The power of the presidency is largely ceremonial and has no real power in China's

political system In political science, a political system means the form of Political organisation, political organization that can be observed, recognised or otherwise declared by a society or state (polity), state. It defines the process for making official gov ...

, the vast majority of power stems from the president's position as

General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party The general secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party ( zh, s=中国共产党中央委员会总书记, p=Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Zǒngshūjì) is the leader of the Chinese Communist Part ...

and commander-in-chief of the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

Czech Republic

The

president of the Czech Republic The president of the Czech Republic, constitutionally defined as the President of the Republic (), is the head of state of the Czech Republic and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Czech Republic. The presidency has largely bee ...

is elected for a five-year term. Prior 2013, the election was indirect by the

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. The first direct election was held in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

El Salvador

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

elects its head of state – the president of El Salvador – directly through a fixed-date general election whose winner is decided by absolute majority. A presidential term in of 5 years and can't be re-election immediately, to become president again they have to wait one electoral period to run again. Current president of El Salvador is

Nayib Bukele Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez (; born 24 July 1981) is a Salvadoran politician and businessman who has served as the 81st president of El Salvador since 2019. In 1999, Bukele established an advertising company and worked at an advertising com ...

France

The president of France is elected for a five-year (since 2002) term by popular vote.

Indonesia

The president and vice president of Indonesia are elected for a maximum of two five-year terms. Since 2004, presidential elections in Indonesia have been determined by popular vote.

Iran

The president of Iran is elected to a four-year term by the public. The first presidential election in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

was held in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, following the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

of 1979 which resulted in the overthrow of the

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, reigns as head of state for the rest of their life, or until abdication. The extent of the authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutio ...

, although the president's power is second to the

Supreme Leader A supreme leader or supreme ruler typically refers to powerful figures with an unchallenged authority, such as autocrats, dictators to spiritual and revolutionary leaders. Historic examples are Adolf Hitler () of Nazi Germany, Francisco ...

Ireland

The

president of Ireland The president of Ireland () is the head of state of Republic of Ireland, Ireland and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Irish Defence Forces. The presidency is a predominantly figurehead, ceremonial institution, serving as ...

is elected by the Irish people for a seven-year term.

Israel

The

president of Israel The president of the State of Israel (, or ) is the head of state of Israel. The president is mostly, though not entirely, ceremonial; actual executive power is vested in the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet led by the Prime Minister of Israel, pr ...

is elected by the

Knesset The Knesset ( , ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Knesset passes all laws, elects the President of Israel, president and Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister, approves the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet, and supe ...

to a single seven-year term, though the role of the president is largely ceremonial as the real power of the country is in the hands of the

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Kazakhstan

The

president of Kazakhstan The president of Kazakhstan, officially the president of the Republic of Kazakhstan is the executive head of state of the Kazakhstan and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan. As the highest-ranking official ...

is directly elected by popular vote for a single seven-year term. The first ''de-facto'' presidential election in

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

was held in

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, during the

dissolution of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Declaration No. 142-Н of ...

, excluding the 1990 Kazakh presidential election where the president was indirectly elected by the Supreme Soviet of the Kazakh SSR.

Kyrgyzstan

The

president of Kyrgyzstan The president of Kyrgyzstan, officially the president of the Kyrgyz Republic, is the head of state and head of government of the Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyz Republic. The president directs the executive branch of the Government of Kyrgyzstan, national g ...

undergoes a single term of six years.

Lithuania

The president of Lithuania is elected for a five-year term by the citizens of Lithuania.

Mexico

The president of Mexico is elected for a six-year term by the public. The first presidential election in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

was in 1934, although these weren't considered to have met international standards until

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

Palestine

The president of the Palestinian National Authority is the highest-ranking political position in the

State of Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

and is elected to a four-year term by the public.

Philippines

The president of the Philippines is the highest-ranking political position in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

and is elected to a six-year term by the general populace. The most recent presidential election was held in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

which resulted in

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. (, , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials BBM or PBBM, is a Filipino politician who has served as the 17th president of the Philippines since 2022. He is the second child ...

being elected as the 17th president of the Philippines.

Poland

The first president of

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I ...

was

Gabriel Narutowicz Gabriel Józef Narutowicz (; 29 March 1865 – 16 December 1922) was a Polish people, Polish professor of hydroelectric engineering and politician who served as the first president of Poland from 11 December 1922 until Assassination of Gabriel Na ...

. In the

, the president was elected by the

, while in the Third Polish Republic the president is elected for a five-year term by the public. The most recent presidential election was the

2020 Polish presidential election Presidential elections were held in Poland on 28 June 2020. As no candidate received a majority of the vote, a second round was held on 12 July, in which incumbent president Andrzej Duda, running with the support of the incumbent government of t ...

. The next election will take place in 2025.

Russia

The president of Russia is elected for a six-year term by the public. The first presidential election in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

was held in

Singapore

The president of Singapore is directly elected by popular vote, subject to potential candidates meeting stringent qualifications set out in the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

, in order to run for office.

South Africa

The president of South Africa is elected by the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

who are elected by the South African public. The leader of the largest elected party in the

becomes president for a five-year term. The first non-racial elections were held in

to mark the end of

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

South Korea

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

has adopted a single, five-year presidential system. People over the age of 19 elect the

by direct voting. Voting for overseas Korean was first conducted during the 20th presidential election in 2017, and about 220,000 overseas Korean participated in the presidential election.

Switzerland

The president of the Swiss Confederation is elected every year for a one-year term by the Federal Assembly among the seven Federal Councillors who collectively form together the Head of State. ''

Primus inter pares is a Latin phrase meaning first among equals. It is typically used as an honorary title for someone who is formally equal to other members of their group but is accorded unofficial respect, traditionally owing to their seniority in office. H ...

'', the president has no powers over and above the other six Councillors and continues to head his or her department. Traditionally the duty rotates among the members in order of seniority and the previous year's vice president becomes president.

Republic of China

*Candidates for President of the Republic of China must be ROC citizens who have reached 40 years of age, has set their domicile in the ROC for not less than 15 years and lived in the free regions of the ROC for not less than 6 consecutive months. Naturalised citizens, residents of Hong Kong, Macau or the People's Republic of China, soldiers and election officials are not eligible.

Tanzania

The president of Tanzania is elected by general vote every five years. As of 2015, 24,001,134 people in Tanzania were registered to vote. Voters are registered upon completion of a Biometric Voters Register kit. The current president is John Magufuli.

Turkey

The

president of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye (), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national government and is the commander-in-chief of the ...

is elected for a maximum of two five-year terms. Prior to 2014, the election was indirect by the

. Since 2014, presidential elections in Turkey have been determined by

popular vote Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the tota ...

Ukraine

The

president of Ukraine The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...

is elected for a five-year term by the public. The first presidential election in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

was held in

following the

United States

The

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

has

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

on the state and local levels. The

Electoral College An electoral college is a body whose task is to elect a candidate to a particular office. It is mostly used in the political context for a constitutional body that appoints the head of state or government, and sometimes the upper parliament ...

is the constitutional body that elects the president, and voters actually vote for the members of the Electoral College at the state level. In the U.S., the presidential elections at the state-level decide which people shall become members of the Electoral College for each state, and those members of the Electoral College in turn cast their votes for the presidential candidates. The first recorded Electoral College presidential election in the United States was in 1788−1789, in which

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

won.

Venezuela

The president of Venezuela is elected by the public to a six-year term.

List of presidential elections

* Elections in Albania *

Elections in Argentina At the national level, Argentina elects a head of state (the President) and a legislature. The franchise extends to all citizens aged 16 and over, and voting is mandatory (with a few exceptions) for all those who are between 18 and 70 years of ...

* Elections in Belarus * Elections in Brazil * Elections in Estonia * Elections in El Salvador *

Elections in Finland There are five types of elections in Finland: elections for the President of Finland, president, the Parliament of Finland, parliament, county councils of the Wellbeing services counties of Finland, wellbeing services counties, Municipalities of ...

Elections in France France is a unitary state, unitary Semi-presidential system, semi-presidential republic with a bicameral legislature. Public officials in the legislative and executive branches are either elected by the citizens (directly elected, directly or ...

Elections in Germany Several articles in several parts of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany govern elections and establish constitutional requirements such as the secret ballot, and the requirement that all elections be conducted in a free and fair m ...

* Elections in Hungary * Elections in India * Elections in Iceland *

Elections in Indonesia Elections in Indonesia have taken place since 1955 to elect a legislature. At a national level, Indonesian people did not elect a head of state – the President of Indonesia, president – until 2004. Since then, the presiden ...

Elections in Iran Iran elects on a national level a head of government (the president), a legislature (the Majlis), and an " Assembly of Experts" (which elects the Supreme Leader). City and Village Council elections are also held every four years throughout the ...

Elections in the Republic of Ireland In Ireland, direct elections by universal suffrage are used for the President, the ceremonial head of state; for Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas or parliament; for the European Parliament; and for local government ...

Elections in Israel Elections in Israel are based on nationwide proportional representation. The electoral threshold is currently set at 3.25%, with the number of seats a party receives in the Knesset being proportional to the number of votes it receives. The Kness ...

* Elections in Italy *

Elections in Mexico Elections in Mexico are held for officials at federal, state, and municipal levels. At the federal level, the nation's head of state, the president, is directly elected with the popular vote by all Mexican citizens for a six-year non-rene ...

* Elections in the Palestinian National Authority * Elections in Poland * Elections in Portugal *

Elections in Russia On the federal level, Russia elects a president as head of state and a parliament, one of the two chambers of the Federal Assembly. The president is elected for, at most, two consecutive six-year terms by the people (raised from four years from ...

* Elections in South Africa * Elections in South Korea *

Elections in Spain Elections in Spain encompass four different types: general elections, Autonomous communities of Spain, regional elections, Local government in Spain, local elections, and elections to the European Parliament. General elections and regional elect ...

* Elections in Taiwan * Elections in Turkey *

Elections in Ukraine An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

Elections in the United States Elections in the United States are held for Official, government officials at the Federal government of the United States, federal, State governments of the United States, state, and Local government in the United States, local levels. At the ...

* Elections in Venezuela

References

Head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

Presidential elections in France The president of France (''ex officio'' also a co-prince of Andorra) is elected by direct popular vote to a five-year term. If the office falls vacant before the end of five years, an election to a new five-year term is held, generally within ...

* Elections in Algeria *

Elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Direct elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo occur for the Presidency, National Assembly (lower house of the legislature), and provincial assemblies. The Senate (the upper house), and provincial governors are elected indirectly by mem ...

United States presidential election The election of the president of the United States, president and Vice President of the United States, vice president of the United States is an indirect election in which citizens of the United States who are Voter registration in the United ...

* Elections by country

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Presidential Election Elections by type

Elections by country

Albania

Chile

China

Czech Republic

El Salvador

France

Indonesia

Iran

Ireland

Israel

Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan

Lithuania

Mexico

Palestine

Philippines

Poland

Russia

Singapore

South Africa

South Korea

Switzerland

Republic of China

Tanzania

Turkey

Ukraine

United States

Venezuela

List of presidential elections

See also

References

Related articles

External links