To be eligible to run for president, there are 3 qualifications a candidate must meet. First, a candidate must be 35 years old. The youngest president was Theodore Roosevelt, who became president at 42 after William McKinley was assassinated. The youngest elected president was a 43 year old John F. Kennedy in 1960, while the oldest elected president was a 73 year old Ronald Reagan in 1984.

A presidential candidate must also be a natural born citizen, which means that a candidate must either have been born on US soil or have a parent that is a US citizen.

The last qualification is for a candidate for president to have lived in the United States for 14 years.

"The 3 Qualifications for President" video

George Washington set the tradition of only serving two terms as President. Franklin Roosevelt broke that tradition by being elected to a 3rd term in 1940 and a 4th term in 1944, although Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt & Grover Cleveland were unsuccessful in running for a 3rd term before him.

The 22nd Amendment (1951) officially limits the President to two 4-year terms or 10 years in office if a Vice-President becomes President and serves two years or less and then is elected to two terms.

Term Limits video

Every President has been elected using the Electoral College System. There are a total of 538 electoral votes, and the number of electoral votes a state receives is determined by the number of senators and representatives a state has (2 + the number House seats = Electoral votes, for example: Virginia 2+11=13, California 2+53=55, Wyoming 2+1=3, Washington D.C. also gets 3 electoral votes).

Each state has a stand-alone winner-take-all election, which means that whomever gets the most popular votes receives all of the state’s electoral votes. For instance, the popular vote winner in Virginia gets 13 electors from their party to represent them at the Electoral College meeting in December.

It takes a majority, or 270, of the electoral votes to be elected President. A candidate can win the popular vote and still lose the election by losing the electoral college. This has happened 4 times- in 1876, 1888, 2000, and 2016.

Once elected, the president is sworn in, on January 20th unless that day is a Sunday. This day is called Inauguration Day.

Electoral College video

"Grover learns about the Electoral College" video

"How the U.S. Supreme Court Decided the Presidential Election of 2000" video

Picture of President Lincoln's 2nd inauguration in 1864

The 25th amendment establishes the line of succession to the Presidency. The first in line is the Vice-President, followed by the Speaker of the House, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the cabinet positions in the order that they were created (Secretary of State is first).

The amendment also establishes procedures when the President cannot serve. In this case, the President informs Congress, or if unable, a majority of the Cabinet and the Vice President inform Congress that the President can not fulfill his or her duties. The Vice-President is then made acting President. This has happened 3 times- Ronald Reagan had surgery in 1985 and George W. Bush had colonoscopies in 2002 & 2007.

"Who is the Next in Line for Succession After the President?" video

"How does the 25th Amendment Work?" video

The president is paid $400,000 a year and the Vice President is paid $202,000 a year. The president also receives free medical and dental care. The president lives in the White House, has access to Camp David (a retreat in Maryland), and has access to special aircraft- Air Force One (plane) & Marine One (helicopter). The president also receives Secret Service protection both during and after their term.

"Air Force One" video

"The Truths About the White House" video

As chief executive, the president is the head of the executive branch. In this role, the President is responsible for filling about 4,000 positions in the executive branch, including the heads of each them, and also has the power to remove them.

The president can issue executive orders, which are formal statements that direct officials in the executive branch to carry out policies. These orders have the force of law but don’t have to be approved by Congress. Thanksgiving and the Emancipation Proclamation are both well-known executive orders.

As chief of state, the president represents the United States as the symbolic figurehead of the nation, which may include awarding medals to outstanding Americans and representing the nation at public events, like throwing out the first pitch at a baseball game.

As chief diplomat, the president establishes foreign policy, or the strategy how the nation will deal with other nations and their leaders. Examples would be traveling to meet with or host other foreign and domestic dignitaries & negotiating treaties and trade agreements with other foreign leaders, like peace w/ Vietnam or the NAFTA trade agreement with Mexico and Canada.

As commander-in-chief, the president the head of the armed forces and can initiate (start) military action for up to 30 days before consulting Congress. Military action in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan was initiated by the President.

As chief legislator, the President can, propose bills, sign bills into law, veto bills, and call special sessions of Congress. An example of a special session of Congress would be the yearly State of the Union Address, where the president outlines goals for the upcoming year.

The President also has 2 judicial powers: the power to appoint federal judges to the judicial branch & the power to grant a pardon (legal forgiveness of a crime) to those charged and/or convicted of a federal crime.

As chief of party, the president is responsible for the direction of his or her political party in national politics during their term.

As chief citizen, the president communicates with the public and provides national leadership, usually through TV appearances, social media posts, and addresses after a significant event.

The judicial branch can check the president by declaring his or her actions unconstitutional, while the legislative branch can check the president by blocking nominations, the power of impeachment, and overriding vetoes.

The public checks the president by voting. 15 of the 42 presidents that ran for reelection lost.

The 12th Amendment established that the vice president is chosen along with the president. Before then, the top electoral vote-getter became president & the 2nd place finisher was vice president. The job has 2 responsibilities outlined by the Constitution: breaking ties in voting as President of the Senate and serving as president if the president is unable to.

The Executive Office of the President is the organizational structure under which the president’s advisers and assistants work in. There are 3 key parts of the Executive Office: the White House Staff, who advises and assists the President on day to day operations, and includes the Chief of Staff & the Press Secretary, as well as other office workers, advisers, and legal experts; the National Security Council (NSC), who assists the President in making foreign policy; and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), who helps prepare the annual budget that the President sends to Congress.

"Inside the White House: The Situation Room" video

There are 15 department heads who comprise the President’s Cabinet. Besides the Justice Department, which headed by the Attorney General, each other department head is called a Secretary. Each department head is appointed by the President and confirmed by a majority vote in the Senate.

"The Origin of the President's Cabinet' video

The 15 executive departments carry out the nation’s laws and government programs.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) provides services related to Americans’ health, and includes Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control or CDC.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) manages national parks and forests, offers nutrition assistance, and protects the needs of farmers.

The Department of Defense (DOD) helps defend the country, and includes the armed forces, reserves, and Pentagon employees.

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) provides a variety of services, such as healthcare, education and housing assistance, and disability compensation to those who served in the military.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) contains the country's law enforcement agencies and includes the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) protects America’s borders, protects the country from attack, and includes the Coast Guard, Secret Service, and Immigration & Customs Enforcement or ICE.

Other examples of executive departments include the Departments of Housing & Urban Development (HUD), the Treasury, the Interior, and Energy.

"The Organization of the Executive Branch" video

Positions in the federal bureaucracy were initially filled using the spoils system, which meant that campaign supporters were rewarded with jobs despite not being qualified for government jobs (to the victor goes the spoils).

In the aftermath of the assassination of President James Garfield by someone who thought they deserved a government job, Congress passed the Pendleton Civil Service Act in 1883, which based hiring practices on merit (abilities and qualifications), and not political affiliations.

90% of executive department jobs are now protected by the Office of Personnel Management, which was created in 1978 & sets guidelines for hiring practices, places applicants in positions, and protects employees from partisan (party-favoring) practices and abuses from the executive branch.

Almost 3 million people make up the federal bureaucracy (bew-rock-ah-see) and handle the everyday business of the national government. That business includes collecting taxes and enforcing tax laws (the Internal Revenue Service, or IRS), protects the environment by regulating and protecting natural settings and habitats (the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA), delivering mail (the United States Postal Service, or USPS), providing passenger railroad service (Amtrak), aiding in disaster relief (the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA), gathering and analyzing national security information (the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA), administering the space program (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA), and providing technical assistance to foreign countries (Peace Corps).

The Federal bureaucracy also oversees and regulates different aspects of the economy, such as the air travel industry (the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA), the stock market (the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC), and public airwaves for radio and television (the Federal Communication Commission, or FCC).