Have you ever wondered why Election Day in the United States always falls on the first Tuesday of November?
The answer to why this seemingly arbitrary date was chosen can be explained by the lifestyle of the average American farmer in the 1800s.
States used to hold elections whenever they wanted within 34 days before the first Wednesday in December. But since states that voted earlier could sway opinions and affect turnout, Congress stepped in to standardize the process in 1845.
Lawmakers had some things to consider before they chose any old date to hold the election.
At the start of the nineteenth century, roughly 75 percent of Americans worked on farms in rural areas far away from their polling stations.
Voters are pictured on October 31 waiting in line at an early voting location in Missouri
Farmer in a vegetable field holding a box of produce, showing the productivity and diversity of his farm in northern Wisconsin circa 1895
That’s a stark contrast to how the country’s population is distributed today, with just 14 percent of people living in rural counties.
Since most Americans lived so far out of the way of their voting site at that time, legislators wanted to give them at least a day or two to travel there and back.
Weekends didn’t work because religion was a supremely important part of American culture, with most people attending church on Sundays.
Likewise, Wednesday wasn’t ideal because it was the market day for farmers, when they’d travel into the nearest town to sell their produce, meat and eggs.
Tuesday was eventually selected as the most convenient day of the week to hold elections, and in 1845, Congress passed a law declaring the first Tuesday following the first Monday of November to be Election Day.
But why November? Again, lawmakers were catering to the agrarian-dominated labor force.
Spring and early summer were planting season, and then in late summer and early fall, farmers would be busy harvesting their crops.
Winter was obviously not a good time to hold elections, as it was much more difficult to travel in the cold in an era without cars and well-paved roads.
Now, 179 years and 44 presidential elections later, voters will head to the polls to pull the lever for Donald Trump or Kamala Harris on that exact same day in November that Congress designated
So November, which fell right after the fall harvest, was chosen as the most optimal time for Election Day.
Now, 179 years and 44 presidential elections later, voters will head to the polls to pull the lever for Donald Trump or Kamala Harris on that exact same day in November that Congress designated.
Plenty of other changes to American elections were enacted after 1845, the most consequential of which came through amendments to the Constitution.
For instance, black men were officially given the right to vote in 1870 through the 15th Amendment, though Jim Crow laws in the south were notorious for suppressing African American turnout.
Women would later win the right to cast ballots when the 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920.
And before 1913, the average American voter didn’t choose their senators. Rather, state legislatures picked who would represent the state in the US Senate.
The 17th Amendment changed this and also allowed governors to appoint senators in case they die or leave office before their term is up.
