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The Legal Effect of Political Conventions
When the delegates of a political party meet to select the party’s candidate for president, the meeting is referred to as
a convention.
Conventions are a party’s formal
recognition of a candidate as its
representative in an upcoming
election. They give the members
of the party an opportunity to
formally meet the candidate and
also to discuss the party’s stand
on the important political issues
of the day. It is important for
parties to hold conventions as
a way of formally giving their
support to a candidate. A party
convention also introduces
and markets the ideas of the
party and the candidate to its supporters and potential
supporters.
Eligibility of Candidates for the Ballot
A political nominee for presidency becomes legally able
to enter the race after he or she has fulfilled a number
of conditions. The conditions are outlined in the US
Constitution and its Amendments. For instance, the person
should be at least 35 years of age, he or she must be a
citizen of the US by birth, and must have lived permanently
in the country for at least 14 years.
The political nominee should also not have served more
than two terms in office, and if he or she has served as
the acting president, or was the president during another
person’s term, the candidate cannot be elected for more
than an additional term. The candidate also needs one
million signatures from supporters in order to be eligible to
run for president.
Effects of Election Rules
The US election rules are founded upon the Constitution
and Amendments and are outlined simply and clearly. The
election rules can considerably effect whether one will
become president or not.
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The US has 538 electoral colleges and each college has one
vote. Therefore the electoral colleges provide a total of 538
votes. The president is elected by electoral votes, and not
the popular vote. It is important to note that one may lose
the popular vote and still be the president if he or she wins
the electoral vote. To win the electoral vote, a candidate
requires over 50% of the electoral vote.
To determine the number of electoral votes of a particular
state, the number of senators and members of the House
of Representatives in that state is added. The District
of Columbia has a number of electoral votes equal to
the state with the smallest number. This constitutes
the electoral vote. All states have two senators, but the
number of members of the House of Representatives varies
depending on the population of the states. States with
larger populations have more members of the House of
Representatives than those with lower populations.
Different states award the electoral votes differently to the
candidates. In all states except Nebraska and Maine, the
candidate who wins the popular vote (most votes) in the
State gets all of the electoral votes. Nebraska and Maine
allocate electoral votes depending on the votes of each
congressional district. The candidate who is awarded the
majority vote is the one who has won the popular vote in
each congressional district.
In the event that no candidate wins the majority of the
electoral votes, the House of Representatives will vote to
determine the President. The presidential candidate is the
candidate who wins the majority vote and not necessarily
the popular vote.
Challenging a Candidate’s Nomination
A candidate may challenge the nomination of a rival
candidate in the party during the Convention. This can
be done as a way to show the weaknesses of the rival
candidate, or to show that candidate in a negative light.
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A candidate may also opt to go to thinking logically. It is recommended that you have a
a court of law if he feels the party’s multidisciplinary major background such as political science,
constitution was violated during the government, public speaking, economics, history, English,
nomination of the rival candidate. and others. An election attorney also needs to be licensed
In the ongoing US presidential race, or be admitted to the Bar of the state or states in whose
Senator Clinton could have challenged jurisdiction he or she wishes to practice .
Senator Obama during the DNC
Convention, as the two were on a As a convention lawyer, some of your responsibilities
neck-and-neck battle for the White include keeping abreast of what your client’s opposition is
House. However, she may have doing, in order to protect your client. An election attorney
decided to forgo this for the sake of may represent political action committees (PACs), political
unity in the Democratic Party. parties or oversight agencies. His or her responsibilities
are both administrative and legal. If you are working in a
In the Republican Convention, there is no likelihood that any political legal job in the private sector, you may be involved
challenges will be brought against Senator McCain. All of his with fundraising during election campaigns. Election lawyers
challengers for the Republican Party presidential nomination deal with both Democrats and Republicans, but not both at
conceded defeat and are rallying behind him. McCain did not the same time. He or she advises his candidate on how to
face any serious challenges from the other challengers. comply with election laws, and sets out legal strategies to
be followed by the candidate or political party.
Nature of Work of an Election Lawyer
Conclusion
Legal jobs offer many fields of specialization for those who
pursue them. Political legal jobs require one to have Political legal jobs have become lucrative fields in recent
completed a college degree and have gone to Law school years. In fact, election lawyers have become critical as
for three years. One is also required to pass a written bar political candidates and parties lay down legal strategies to
exam that is administered in the State where he wishes to secure victory, and work to seal any legal loopholes through
practice. There is high competition for entry into law school. which their opponents may seek advantage.

Although it is not required, election lawyers should be

proficient in writing, researching, reading, analyzing, and

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