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Just Ask Us: Why are elections held on Tuesdays?

Although some states hold primaries or other local elections on Saturdays, Tuesdays are “far and away the norm,” said Barry Burden, a political science professor and director of the Elections Research Center at UW-Madison. State and local governments held elections on different days of the week until the mid-1800s, when Congress mandated presidential and congressional elections be held the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, he said.