The next United States presidential election is to be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. It will be

the 57th quadrennial presidential election in which presidential electors, who will officially elect the

president and the vice president of the United States on December 17, 2012, will be chosen.

Incumbent President Barack Obama is running for a second and final term during this election. His

major challenger is former Massachusetts Governor, Republican Mitt Romney

THE CANDIDATES : BIOGRAPHIES

who where when primary high attended stepfather after elected

from Harvard-educated edged out

Barack Obama was born in Hawaii in 1961 to an American mother and a Kenyan father. When he was two, his

parents, 1 ____________ had met as students at the University of Hawaii, divorced. Obama's

2

_______________ father then returned to Kenya, 3

__________ he worked in the economics ministry. Obama

lived in Indonesia with his mother and 4

_________________ for part of his childhood, returning to Hawaii to

finish 5

_______________________ school. He graduated 6

______________

Columbia University, where he specialized in international relations. He then 7

______________ Harvard Law

School and graduated magna cum laude. 8

_______________ law school, he worked as a community organizer

and a civil rights lawyer in Chicago. He also taught at the University of Chicago Law School as a senior lecturer

specializing in constitutional law. In 2004, he was 9

________________ to the U.S. Senate, winning with 70% of

the vote.

Barack Obama made history in June 2008, 10

____________ he became the first African American to head a

major party ticket in a presidential election. He 11

______________Sen. Hillary Clinton in the race for the

Democratic presidential nomination after a long and often bitter 12

___________ season. Finally , he defeated

Sen. John McCain in the last general election .

also career gave up first have later with private humble

Mitt Romney was born in Detroit on March 12, 1947. His mother, Lenore, 1______________ an acting

career when she met and married his father, George. Mitt's father came from 2

__________________origins and never graduated from college. Mitt apprenticed as a carpenter and

sold aluminum paint before beginning a career. He graduated from Brigham Young University in 1971

and then he earned dual degrees from Harvard Law and Harvard Business School.

Mitt married his wife, Ann, in 1969. They 3

________________ met in elementary school when he was

a Cub Scout . When they met again years 4

__________________ at a friend's house, he was smitten.

They have five sons and eighteen grandchildren, who are the center of their lives. Like any family, the

Romneys 5

_____________ faced hardship: Ann was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1998, and

more recently fought a battle 6

_____________ breast cancer.

Mitt is not a 7

_____________ politician. He has spent most of his life in the 8 _________________

sector,

giving him intimate knowledge of how economy works. But he has 9

__________________ been an

outstanding public servant.

US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION SYSTEM

Watch the video ( www.iesgoyaenglishblog.blogspot.com ) and complete the following sentences

OR go to www.youtube.com and type : Electing a US President in Plain English

1. Presidential elections in the USA take place every _______________ years.

2. Voters should be _____________ or older.

3. Us elections are not decided by the total of popular votes but _______________________

4. On election day you vote for _______________ and ___________________ ; you only have one

choice.

5. Then all the votes in your state are ___________________

6. The candidate with the more _______________________ votes becomes the candidate your

state ____________________ for president.

7. But you cannot elect the president by counting the choices of the states because US states are

different : each state has a different _________________ of votes.

8. Each state has the right ____________________ in the election – this depends on the

___________________ of each state.

9. Each state is divided into ______________________ . For example : North Carolina has

_________ , California has _____________ and Cansas only ____________

10. The more _________________ the more _________________ and so the more

______________

11. The influence a state has is measured by the number of __________________ . This number

comes from the number of ________________ + the number of US Senators , which is always

______________

12. A candidate wins the number of ________________ in a state

13. The total of electors is ________________

14. The candidate has to win the majority , that is ________________ If this happens they become

_____________________________

15. Then , on the following ____________________ the President Elect is sworn in as the new

President of the USA.