The people
Elect members of Congress under the Constitution and amendments.
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🇺🇸 Formal national power · source bounded
Who selects whom in United States?
Power is divided across elected branches, states, electors, and federal courts.
Dots are institutions · arrows are sourced powers
Federal presidential constitutional system
The Constitution vests federal legislative, executive, and judicial power separately, then creates overlapping appointment, veto, override, impeachment, removal, and constitutional-review relationships.
Explore the whole systemHow voters choose power
Elections3 paths
The dots
Institutions represented on this map.
Each institution below has an attached source. Being listed does not imply an unshown formal relationship.
States
Appoint presidential electors in the manner directed by state legislatures.
Presidential electors
Cast the constitutionally prescribed votes for President and Vice President.
Congress
The House and Senate exercise federal legislative powers and separate impeachment functions.
President
Exercises federal executive power and participates in legislation through presentment and veto.
Federal judiciary
The Supreme Court and lower federal courts exercise the federal judicial power.
Evidence and limits
Every line has a source. Every missing layer stays visible.
The map describes formal national relationships only. It does not measure democratic quality, legitimacy, actual compliance, or informal influence.
Official or constitutional source
Constitution of the United States
Congress.gov, Library of Congress
- branch vesting
- Congressional elections
- presidential electors
- appointments
- presentment and veto
- impeachment and removal
Separation of Powers Under the Constitution
Constitution Annotated, Congress.gov
- separation of powers
- veto and override
- constitutional review