View source for General election

{{Short description|Election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen}}
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{{Elections}}

A '''general election''' is an [[electoral process]] to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=April 7, 2015 |title=What Is a General Election? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/32206370 |access-date=2023-03-29 |newspaper=BBC Newsround}}</ref> They are distinct from [[By-election|by-elections]], which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections typically occur at regular intervals as mandated by a country's constitution or electoral laws, and may include elections for a [[legislature]] and sometimes other positions such as a directly elected president.<ref name=":0" /> In many jurisdictions, general elections can coincide with other electoral events such as [[Local government|local]], [[Region|regional]], or [[Supranational union|supranational elections]].<ref name="FTPA" /> For example, on 25 May 2014, Belgian voters simultaneously elected their national parliament, 21 members of the [[European Parliament]], and regional parliaments.

In [[Politics of the United States|the United States]], "general election" has a slightly different, but related meaning: the ordinary electoral competition following the selection of candidates in the [[Partisan primary|primary election]].

==United Kingdom==
{{Main|Elections in the United Kingdom|United Kingdom general elections overview}}

The term ''general election'' in the United Kingdom often refers to the elections held on the same day in all constituencies of their [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|members of Parliament]] (MPs) to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=General elections |url=https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/elections-and-voting/general/ |access-date=2025-08-24 |website=www.parliament.uk |language=en}}</ref>

Historically, English and later British general elections took place over a period of several weeks, with individual constituencies holding polling on different days. However, from the [[1918 United Kingdom general election|1918 election]] onwards, the elections in all constituencies have been held on the same day. There has been a convention since the 1930s that general elections in Britain should take place on a Thursday; the last general election to take place on any other weekday was that of [[1931 United Kingdom general election|1931]].<ref>{{cite web |title=General elections - UK Parliament |url=https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/elections-and-voting/general/ |access-date=6 November 2024}}</ref>

Under the terms of the [[Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011]], in force until March 2022, the period between one general election and the next was fixed at five years, unless the House of Commons passed one of the following:
* A motion of no confidence in the Government sooner than that, and did not pass a motion of confidence in a new Government within fourteen days<ref name="FTPA">{{cite web |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2011/14/enacted |title=Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 as enacted |website=legislation.gov.uk}}</ref>
* A motion, approved by two-thirds of its members, resolving that a general election should take place sooner<ref name="FTPA" />
* A [[Statutory instrument (UK)|proposal]] from the prime minister to reschedule an election mandated by the Act to no later than two months after the original date<ref name="FTPA" />

Although not provided for in the Fixed-term Parliaments Act, an early election could also be brought about by an act of parliament specifically calling for a general election, which (unlike the second option above) only required a simple majority.{{cn|date=March 2024}} This was the mechanism used to precipitate the [[2019 United Kingdom general election|December 2019 election]], when the [[Early Parliamentary General Election Act 2019]] was enacted.<ref>{{cite news |first=Rob |last=Pichetal |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/29/uk/uk-general-election-vote-gbr-intl/index.html |title=Britain set for December 12 election after MPs approve snap poll |work=[[Cable News Network]] |date=29 October 2019 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref>

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act was repealed by the [[Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Merrick |first=Rob |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/queens-speech-snap-election-bill-b1845437.html |title=Boris Johnson Grabs Back Power to Call Snap General Election By Scrapping Fixed Five-Year Terms |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |date=11 May 2021 |access-date=31 July 2022 }}</ref>

The term ''general election'' is also used in the United Kingdom to refer to elections to any democratically elected body in which all members are up for election.{{cn|date=March 2024}} Section 2 of the [[Scotland Act 1998]], for example, specifically refers to ordinary elections to the Scottish Parliament as general elections.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Scotland Act 1998 |url=http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1998/ukpga_19980046_en_2#pt1-pb2-l1g2 }}</ref>{{request quotation|date=March 2024}}

== United States ==
{{Main|Elections in the United States}}

In U.S. politics, general elections are elections held at any level (e.g. city, county, congressional district, state) that typically involve competition between at least two parties. General elections occur every two to six years (depending on the positions being filled, with most positions good for four years) and include the presidential election.{{cn|date=March 2024}} "General election" does not refer to [[By-election|special elections]], which fill out positions prematurely vacated by the previous office holder.<ref>{{Cite web |title=general election |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/general_election |access-date=2023-12-31 |website=LII / Legal Information Institute |language=en}}</ref>

Major general elections are as follows:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Congressional elections and midterm elections {{!}} USAGov |url=https://www.usa.gov/midterm-elections |access-date=2023-12-31 |website=www.usa.gov |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Presidential general election {{!}} USAGov |url=https://www.usa.gov/presidential-general-election |access-date=2023-12-31 |website=www.usa.gov |language=en}}</ref> 

# The President and Vice President are elected once every four years (2016, 2020, 2024, 2028, etc.)
# Representatives in the House of Representatives serve two-year terms, and so there are elections for representatives every two years (midterm elections, and during the same year as the Presidency: 2020, 2022, 2024, 2026, etc.){{Failed verification|reason=The source for congressional and midterm elections does not mention general elections.|date=March 2024}}
# Senators serve six-year terms, but their terms are staggered. Throughout the US, a third of the senate will be up for election every midterm and during the Presidential election year.{{Failed verification|reason=The source for congressional and midterm elections does not mention general elections.|date=March 2024}}

The term ''general election'' is distinguished from primaries or caucuses, which are intra-party elections meant to select a party's official candidate for a particular race. Thus, if a primary is meant to elect a party's candidate for the position-in-question, a general election is meant to elect who occupies the position itself.{{cn|date=March 2024}} Presidential [[Partisan primary|primaries]] happen several months before the general election, though [[Caucus#In the United States|not all states hold primaries]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Presidential primaries and caucuses {{!}} USAGov |url=https://www.usa.gov/primaries-caucuses |access-date=2023-12-31 |website=www.usa.gov |language=en}}</ref>

In the [[Louisiana]] the expression ''general election'' means the [[runoff election]] which occurs between the two highest candidates as determined by the [[Nonpartisan blanket primary|jungle primary]].<ref>Chapter 5 of the [http://www.lawserver.com/law/state/louisiana/la-laws/louisiana_revised_statutes_18-401 ''Louisiana Election Code''], incorporating Section 18:401 of the ''Louisiana Revised Statutes''.</ref>{{failed verification|reason=The source mentions general elections, but does not define them.|date=March 2024}}

=== See also ===
* [[Writ of election]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Scholia-inline|Q1076105}}

[[Category:General elections| ]]
[[Category:Elections]]
[[Category:Elections by type]]