Have You Ever Wondered Why US Election Day is Always on a Tuesday and in November? Find out !

Why is US Election Day always on a Tuesday? (Specifically, the Tuesday after the first Monday in November.) It's always a given, like Easter always being on a Sunday, or Thanksgiving always being on a Thursday. Well, it’s been that way since 1845.

According to NPR, before the law was passed in 1845 to declare one country-wide Election Day, each individual state simply set their own voting dates and it was, well, disorganized. So, Congress set out to make a change.

But why November, and why Tuesday? Well, it basically boils down to farmers, and the process of elimination. Back then, American society was made up mostly of farmers. And, according to The History Channel, November was chosen for Election Day because planting and harvest seasons were done by then, but the harsh and dangerous winter weather was usually yet to come. 

As for choosing a specific day, Sunday was out, because it would prevent people from observing the Sabbath. And because back then, cars weren’t yet a thing and people traveled everywhere by horse and buggy, Monday was also eliminated. After all, that horse and buggy journey to the polls would’ve taken some serious time, and voters couldn’t get started until the Sabbath was over. Congress crossed Wednesday off the list, because that was usually market day for the farmers. So, the next logical option was Tuesday — and so it has remained for more than 100 years.


Though the reasoning made sense back then, today, voting on a Tuesday is actually problematic for many Americans, who have to be in offices or at work on Election Day. It seems that, without the concern of horse and buggies, or country-wide market days, it now makes more sense for Election Day to be on a weekend (or for it to be declared a national holiday). But it doesn’t look like Congress is making any moves in that direction, so, for now, enjoy the day off from school if it's a polling place.