美国总统选举每四年举行一次。总统选举的程序分为预选、党的全国 代表大会、总统候选人竞选、全国选民投票选出总统“选举人”和“选举 人”成立选举人团正式选举总统 5 个阶段进行，整个程序需耗费近一年的 时间。 预选方式主要有两种：一种是像艾奥瓦州那样，由各党从基层选区开 始，自下而上逐级选出出席县、州和全国代表大会的代表；另一种是像新 罕布什尔州那样，由各党的选民在同一天到投票站秘密投票，分别选举各 自支持的总统候选人，然后根据各候选人的得票比例确定该州参加各党全 国代表大会的代表人数。第二种方式比较正规，绝大部分州都采用这一方 式。
各党的全国代表大会一般在 7、8 月份举行，主要任务是确定该党的总 统、副总统候选人，并通过党的竞选纲领。此后，总统竞选便正式展开， 各党的总统候选人开始疯狂拉票，这一过程一般持续 8 周-9 周。 全国选民投票是在选举年 11 月份的第一个星期一后的第一个星期二 举行，这天也叫总统大选日。由于美国总统选举实行选举人团制度，因此 总统大选日实际上是选举代表选民的“选举人”。真正的总统选举，在选 举年 12 月第二个星期三之后的第一个星期一举行。届时，各州被推选出的 “选举人”将最终选出新总统，当选总统将在次年 1 月 20 日宣誓就职。 U.S. presidential election process U.S. presidential elections are held every four years. Presidential election procedure is divided into pre-selection of the party's National People's Congress, presidential candidates campaign, the national voters elected president "electors" and "electors" the establishment of the Electoral College formally elected president five stages, the entire program would entail nearly a year's time. Preselection mode, there are two: one is like Iowa did, by the party from the grass-roots constituency, the bottom-up level by level elected to attend the county, state, and representatives of the National People's Congress; another is like New Hampshire as, by the party's voters to the polls by secret ballot on the same day, respectively election respective support presidential candidate, then determined according to the proportion of the votes of the candidates in the state to participate in each party's number of representatives of the National People's Congress. The second approach is more formal, the vast majority of states in this manner.
Each party's National People's Congress is held usually in July and August, the main task is to determine the party's presidential and vice presidential candidates, and the party's election platform. Since then, the presidential campaign was launched, the party's presidential candidate began to frantically canvassing, a process that typically lasts eight weeks -9 weeks. Nation
al voters in an election year in November, the first Monday after the first one held on Tuesday, this day is also called the presidential election date. As the U.S. presidential election in the implementation of the electoral college system, the date of the presidential election is actually "electors" election on behalf of the voters. The truly presidential election, the first election year in December following the second Wednesday held Monday. In that time, the states pushed elect "electors" will eventually elect a new president, the president-elect will be sworn in on January 20 of the following year.