The US Elections will be held on November 6th 2012. The race which will dominate international coverage will be the Presidential Election. We've seen in recent days how the competition for the Republican nomination is developing. President Obama will seek re-election, but there is some chatter about a challenge for the Democratic nomination. The possibility of a serious third party challenger has also been discussed. On the same day there will be elections for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives. One third of the Senate seats are also in play. The Americans have moved to a system where most local, state and federal elections are held on the same day in November.
In France the two main national elections are held on separate days. The Presidential Election will see its first round on April 22nd. If no candidate wins more than 50% of the votes cast, a second round will be held on May 6th, a contest that will only involve two candidates. The first round of the elections for the Assemblee nationale will take place on June 10th - with a second round one week later.
In September 2011, on Sunday 25th, elections will be held for half of the Senat seats (the upper House of the French Parlement). These are indirect elections. Further details about the electorate and the seats which are being fought, can be found here.
