WHY TUESDAY?! Why Do We Vote on Tuesday? Blame 1845
Animated Short, 0:36. Published 2026-11-13.
Why do we vote on Tuesday? Because in 1845 most voters were farmers who needed a full day on horseback to reach the polls, and Sunday (church) and Wednesday (market day) were out.
Keep Tuesday, or move it to the weekend? 👇
The law: the Act of January 23, 1845 (5 Stat. 721) set the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Today it lives in 3 U.S.C. 1 and 21 (Congress uses the same day, 2 U.S.C. 7).
Sources: U.S. Statutes at Large, 5 Stat. 721 (govinfo.gov); Library of Congress, Today in History: Election Day.
Why Tuesday (travel day, church, market day, after harvest): History.com, "Why Is Election Day a Tuesday in November?"; TIME, "The Reason Election Day Is Tuesday".
Animated in 3D. Subscribe for more weird history.
Transcript
He rode his horse all Monday just to drop one piece of paper in a box. And that ride is why you still vote on a Tuesday. Just make it Sunday. Sunday is church. Nobody rides on Sunday. Then Wednesday! Wednesday is market day. Nobody misses market day. So, the farmer leaves on Monday, rides all day, and votes on Tuesday.
That was 1845. Today, the polls are 10 minutes away. And we still vote on the day the horse picked. Keep Tuesday or move it to the weekend.
More from Unfold
- Congress Flipped... Now What?! What Democrats Can Block in 2027
- Why the President's Party Almost ALWAYS Loses the Midterms
- STEEL OR FEATHERS?! Which Is Heavier, Steel or Feathers?
- WHY CLOTHES?! The Real Reason Humans Started Wearing Them
- FAKE LEFTY?! Left Handed People When Nobody's Watching
- FAKE LEFTY 2?! Left Handed People When Nobody Is Watching
Unfold Animated. Funny cartoons that make you smarter. No AI images, no AI video. Real facts, checked.