Election poster, campaign of Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin, 1860, lithograph.
election, Formal process by which voters make their political choices on public issues or candidates for public office. The use of elections in the modern era dates to the emergence of representative government in Europe and North America since the 17th century. Regular elections serve to hold leaders accountable for their performance and permit an exchange of influence between the governors and the governed. The availability of alternatives is a necessary condition. Votes may be secret or public. See also electoral system; party system; plebiscite; primary election; referendum and initiative.
