The U.S. President: Office, Candidates, and the 2028 Election

The U.S. President is the head of the executive branch, the commander in chief of the armed forces, and the head of state. The office is established by Article II of the Constitution, which vests "the executive power" in a single person elected by the people.

The President signs or vetoes legislation passed by Congress, nominates federal judges and senior executive-branch officers (subject to Senate confirmation), conducts foreign policy through treaties and executive agreements, and directs the operations of the fifteen executive departments and dozens of independent agencies.

The Vice President serves alongside the President, presides over the Senate, and assumes the office in the event of a vacancy. The Twenty-fifth Amendment governs succession and temporary transfers of power when the officeholder is unable to discharge the duties of the role.

Presidential elections are held every four years on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Voters in the 50 states and the District of Columbia do not vote directly for the office — they choose presidential electors, who in turn cast the formal votes for President and Vice President. A candidate needs at least 270 of the 538 electoral votes to win.

Before the general election, each major party narrows its field through a calendar of state primaries and caucuses that runs from January through June of the election year. Both major parties hold a nominating convention in the summer to formally select a nominee and adopt a platform.

The Constitution requires the officeholder to be a natural-born U.S. citizen, at least 35 years old, and a U.S. resident for at least 14 years. The Twenty-second Amendment limits any one person to two elected terms.

The current U.S. President is Donald J. Trump (Republican), inaugurated for a second non-consecutive term on January 20, 2025 after defeating Kamala Harris in November 2024. Joe Biden (Democratic) served as the 46th officeholder from January 2021 through January 2025. Before him, Donald Trump served his first term from January 2017 through January 2021, and Barack Obama (Democratic) served two terms from January 2009 through January 2017.

The 2028 race opens a non-incumbent contest for the first time since 2016: the incumbent is constitutionally barred from a third elected term, and the Vice President's ticket is the most-watched early signal. The Candidate tracks every FEC-filed candidate on both sides — major-party, minor-party, and independent — and updates the directory as filings come in.