January 9, 2024, 11:08 a.m. ET
The 2024 US presidential primaries are fast approaching.Here’s what you need to know
Analysis by CNN’s Zachary B. Wolf
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Before Americans choose a president in November, they will choose candidates in a series of primaries and caucuses. It is a volatile process that has evolved over the course of this country’s history and continues to evolve today.
Here’s what you need to know:
What is a primary? This is an election that typically selects a particular political party’s candidates to appear on the general election ballot.
Who will run in the primaries? For Democrats, Joe Biden is the incumbent president and is running for re-election, making him the incumbent candidate.
Incumbents rarely face serious competition. Several Democrats are challenging him in the Democratic primary, including Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota and author Marianne Williamson. But it still doesn’t have much support, at least in opinion polls.
Former President Donald Trump has long been the Republican front-runner, with polls showing him leading the five other candidates still in the race.
As a former president, Trump also projects some of the power of the incumbent, even though he lost the last election. This is the first time a former president has seriously campaigned for his party’s nomination since Teddy Roosevelt’s failed attempt to regain the Republican nomination in 1912.
Anti-Trump Republicans appear to be primarily interested in two options: former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Haley was polling well in New Hampshire, while DeSantis was focused on Iowa. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson are having a harder time gaining support.
Who can vote in the presidential primary? Varies by state. Primary elections are typically held at polling places like any other election.
However, some states have “open primaries,” meaning any registered voter can vote in either the Democratic or Republican primary. Other states have “closed primaries,” meaning only people registered with a particular political party (usually Republicans or Democrats) can vote in that party’s primary.
Some offer election day registration, which essentially allows most registered voters to participate in the primary.
When are presidential primaries held? The first day on the presidential primary calendar is January 15th, but technically it’s not a primary.
on that day In Iowa, Republicans gather for events called caucuses, where they listen to speeches from supporters of their campaign and vote for their preferred candidates. Unlike other state primaries, these events are overseen by state political parties and differ from regular elections.
Democrats will also gather in Iowa on this day, but voting for the presidential election will be done by mail until March 5th.
In some states, presidential primaries are held on one date and primaries for other offices are held later in the year. See the complete calendar.
Following Iowa, New Hampshire will also hold its “nation’s first” primary election on January 23, but the Democratic Party has not authorized this to be held.Democrats hope to hold their first official primary on February 3rd. Biden won his first victory in the 2020 primary in South Carolina, a more racially diverse state. A primary election will then be held in Nevada on February 6th.
The calendar will expand from there.Republicans will compete in Nevada and South Carolina caucuses on February 8th February 24th.
Learn more about the 2024 primaries.