Why Are We Still Talking About The Election?

But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids

Vermont Public

Nature, Language, Kids & Family, Science

4.4 • 4.9K Ratings

🗓️ 20 November 2020

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A few weeks ago we talked about why kids can't vote and we also answered some questions about the U.S. Presidential Election. It's been two weeks since the November 3rd election, but we're still getting questions about it! We get answers from NPR political reporter Ayesha Rascoe.

TRANSCRIPT

Here are some of the questions we're tackling in this episode: What would happen if someone counted the votes wrong? Why is President Donald Trump going to court and why are people saying Joe Biden might not be president? What is the Electoral College and why do we still have it; why haven’t we changed to a popular vote? How does the president talk to the people without being on the news?

Helping us answer these questions is political reporter Ayesha Rascoe, who covers the White House for NPR. Adults, you might want to check out the NPR Politics Podcast, a daily podcast that frequently features Rascoe's reporting and expertise.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is But Why, a podcast for curious kids from Vermont Public Radio.
0:26.3	I'm Jane Lindholm.
0:28.2	On this show, our listeners are in charge.
0:31.5	You send us questions about things you want answers to, and then melody
0:35.0	boh debt and I run around and find them.
0:37.9	A few weeks ago we talked about why kids can't vote in government elections, and we answered
0:42.9	some of your questions about the US presidential election.
0:46.8	Election Day was officially November 3rd, but this year a lot more people than normal voted
0:52.6	before Election Day.
0:54.3	By sending in their ballots by mail or by voting early at a location called a polling place
0:59.2	where people go and fill in their ballots.
1:02.0	The ballot is the document that has all the people and issues someone is voting on.
1:07.0	Everyone who decided to vote this year had to do it or mail it in by November 3rd, but
1:11.8	we didn't actually know who won the presidential race until four days later.
1:16.6	We'll explain why in a little while.
1:19.1	We now know that former Vice President Joe Biden won the most votes.
1:23.3	We got about 5.8 million more votes than President Donald Trump.
1:28.9	But the way a winner is determined in the United States is a little more complicated than
1:33.6	that.
1:34.8	We use a system called the Electoral College, which we'll talk about in this episode.
1:40.6	But one thing you should know about it as we begin the episode is that votes are kind
1:44.8	of counted on a state-by-state basis.
	...

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