Why Do Americans Vote on a Tuesday in November?

Americans in various places will go the polls and vote on Election Day tomorrow. Ever wonder why a Tuesday in November is designated as Election Day?

The tradition is a throwback to the way people lived more than 200 years ago. Early November provided a chance for people to travel to the polls between bringing in the harvest and settling down for the worst weather of the winter. As for Tuesday, there were concerns about people not having to travel on the sabbath.

In 1845 the US Congress made a tradition the law, mandating that the presidential elections would be held every four years on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

And state and local governments still generally follow the 19th century Election Day tradition, which is why a number of elections around the country will be held tomorrow, on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.