Why does guam have electoral votes

Democratic caucus : June 6, Democratic winner : Joe Biden. Republican caucus : March 14, Republican winner : Donald Trump. Non-binding straw poll : November 3, Winner : Pending. Guam does not cast electoral votes for president of the United States. It does, however, hold primary nominating events. After postponing its May 2 Democratic caucus indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic , the Guam Democratic Party announced on June 4 that the caucus would be held on June 6, He was awarded all nine of the territory's delegates.

In , Guam began holding a non-binding straw poll for president on the day of the general election. The winner of every Guam straw poll between and went on to win the presidency. Prior to the national convention, individual state caucuses and primaries were held to allocate convention delegates.

These delegates vote at the convention to select the nominee. In , a Democratic presidential candidate needed support from 1, delegates to secure the nomination.

With the plurality of pledged delegates, Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee on April 8, , after Sen. Bernie Sanders I-Vt. Biden announced U. Kamala Harris D as his running mate on August 11, Harris is the first Black woman to appear on a major party's ticket in the United States. Trump crossed the delegate threshold necessary to win the nomination—1, delegates—on March 17, George H.

Bush R was the last incumbent to face a serious primary challenge, defeating political commentator Pat Buchanan in He was also the last president to lose his re-election campaign. Puerto Ricans are citizens of the United States, however, and do participate in the U. Because American Samoa is a territory and not a state, it is unable to participate in the U.

America Samoa holds a U. House of Representatives, and we will provide information about those races as we get closer to November. Because the U. Virgin Islands is a territory and not a state, it is unable to participate in the U. The USVI holds a presidential caucus and elections of their own, including for territorial legislature and a non-voting delegate to the U. Federal courts have rejected arguments that Americans living in the U. The Constitution, the courts have held, is clear: Article II explicitly says that the president shall be elected by electors who are chosen by the states.

In , the U. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit heard for the second time an argument it had rejected in , the Puerto Rico residents should have the right to cast ballots in presidential elections. The plaintiffs said a treaty called International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified by the Senate in , required that they be given a vote in presidential elections.

So, for people in American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands to be able to vote in a presidential election would require either:. IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Politics Covid U.

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