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In: Planetary Science
There are different elections for representatives and senators, with Representatives being elected every two years and all Representatives always up for election and Senators being elected every 6 years and having alternating terms so every two years there is either no senate election or one senator up.
Electors are different from representatives and senators, and each state appoints them directly. Some states have laws requiring them to vote the way the population of the state votes, but other states do not and those States can completely invalidate the popular presidential vote in that state if they wish.
If you’re asking for what it looks like when you go to the polls, you’re normally given a single ballot that includes subheads for all the races you’re eligible to vote for: representative, senate, president, local officials. Each subhead gives you the name and party of each candidate including third party designations (Working Party, Independent, whatever). You won’t find representatives, senators or local candidates for other states or areas — If you live in Ohio, say, you’ll vote only for Ohio senators, representatives or local candidates. You can’t vote for California’s senators because they don’t represent you.
You mark each ballot with the person you are voting for (usually the polling place includes voting booths that are semi-private — walls between you and other people (in the old days there were booths that had curtains so nobody behind you could see what you were doing; my local polling place uses desks that you approach from the back, which remains open, but nobody stands behind you in a line like the old days). Once your ballot is marked, at least where I vote, you walk up to the box and put your ballot inside it. There are people at the polls that help you if you can’t figure it out, but nobody sees what’s on the ballot but you. Once you place your ballot in the box, you get a sticker that says I Voted! and sometimes the local school group is selling baked goods and you can pick up a doughnut.
Let’s say you live in Akron, Ohio. Congratulations, you live in Ohio’s 13th Congressional District. You have a representative in the House. That seat is up for election every two years.
Ohio also has 2 senators who represent the entire state, not just your district. Those terms last 6 years, and the two seats are staggered so both never come up for election in the same year. This is a year where one of the seats is being contested.
This year is also a presidential election year, so the candidates for president are on the ballot.
When you go vote, you will vote for the representative from the 13th district, a senator, and a president. The votes for rep and senator are direct. Whoever wins the most votes wins the seats. For president, whoever wins the most votes in the state wins that state’s electors, who then vote for pres directly in December. You do not choose electors. You tell the state your preference for president, and unless the state wants a massive shitstorm, they will send electors to Washington who will follow their state’s voters preferences for president.
The “electors” that you are referring to are a bit more obscure than you are making them out to be, even to Americans. Just to make it clear, the ballot in the US is usually fairly big, because every election from national to state to county to city elections are held at the same time. So for example, this year, I will be voting for President, a US senator, a US rep, a state senator, a state rep, county judges, county sheriff, county clerk, city council, (my city doesn’t have a mayor, but if we did, we would vote for that), and school board positions. Many states would also vote for state positions like governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, etc, but my state does those in even year elections that aren’t presidential elections. There will also be propositions that could be in the ballot at the state, county, and city level that are on the ballot. So the ballot is fairly big.
As for the electors, for almost every state (Nebraska and Maine are the only exceptions) the presidential election for the state is all or nothing, whoever wins for that state, whether by one vote or by millions, that candidate’s party will get to pick the electors for that state. So if Kamala Harris wins New York, then the New York Democratic Party will pick the electors for the state of New York. If Donald Trump wins Mississippi, the Mississippi Republican Party will pick the electors for the state of Mississippi. How they pick those and who they pick are left up to each state’s political party. It will usually just be party operatives in that state, so they know that these electors will vote for their candidate.
These electors then meet in December to officially vote for their candidate and these results are certified and sent to Congress. Yes, it is obscure, and yes, there is some mystery as the vast majority of people don’t know who these electors are. But everyone knows how they will vote, and like I said that is based on whoever got the most votes in that state.
It can be way more than that, depending on where you live.
Each state has 2 senators, and a number representatives based on population, these are they folks that go to Washington DC. The state is divided into districts for the representatives, based on population. My state (Nevada) has 4, but the state being mostly empty two of them are massive in area. Two of the districts cover the Las Vegas metro area, and by area are pretty small. The other two are each half the [remainder of the state.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevada%27s_congressional_districts)
There are also state level equivalents of the US Senate and House of Representatives, called the Assembly and Nevada Senate. The state is also divided into districts for those, again based on population.
Getting smaller, most states are also divided into counties, and in those counties cities, so I also get to vote for County Commission members, and also City Council Members and Mayor.
Of the above, the terms vary and they stagger them, so they are not all up for election every time.
My State also elects Judges, so they are on the ballot as well, as are members of the school board, and a bunch of other minor government positions.
We also do both statewide and county wide ballot questions, where laws can be changed/enacted directly by the people. This year we have 8 of them, 7 for the state, and one for the county.
So this year, I will have 18 items on my ballot, 10 people, and 8 questions.
President/VP, Senator, US Representative, State Assembly, County Commission, three state supreme court justices, Member of the state board of education, a local judge, seven state ballot questions, and one County ballot question.
On Edit, for clarity: This is how my state does it, I believe most do similar, but not always.
They aren’t the same as electors. Most state’s electors are bound by law to vote for who wins the state’s general election and many of those also have laws that if an elector decides to not do so, their vote is voided and they are replaced.
But yes, you vote separately for your representative and your senator. The entire state votes on each senator when their seat is up for election. You only vote for the representative in the district you live in.
Senators serve 6 year terms. Reps only 2 years.
You have 2 senators from each state. They are not up for election at the same time usually.
We vote on the entire house of representatives every 2 years.
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