CHAPTER ONE CHOOSING OUR LEADERS election Day is an important event in the United States On this day citizens vote to elect their leaders Voting is an important part of a democracy A democracy is a system of government by the people To vote is a responsibility of American citizenship US elections have a long humble history The first presidential election took place between Two young women take a selfie after casting their votes Texas in
December 15 1788 and January 7 1789 It was much different from today’s elections No political parties existed No one campaigned George Washington was the choice for president No one ran against him Direct Democracy This first American presidential election was an important step It was the first time in history that citizens had voted to elect their nation’s leader Democracy was not a new idea In 507 BCE a man named Cleisthenes created the world’s first democracy It was in Athens Greece Male citizens age 18 and older could participate Women slaves and foreigners were excluded The men met approximately once a week at an assembly called the Ecclesia At the Ecclesia the men voted on each issue and law themselves This is called direct democracy Direct democracy works best with small groups Today people use it in events such as town meetings Town meetings are common in only a few states There 6
A modern bust of Cleisthenes on display at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus Ohio 7
