Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
election
Table of Contents
References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images, Videos & Interactives
2008 Canadian federal election results
The difference between a primary and caucus, explained
What is a midterm election?
Guide to U.S. presidential election results
What is Super Tuesday?
Afghans voting, 2009 Polling place Australian ballot
Understand the importance of electoral exit polling after an election
Know about electoral opinion polling and how to get an accurate opinion poll
For Students
Lincoln-Hamlin election poster
election summary
Quizzes
Election - Voters in polling station voting in 2012 Presidential Election, Ventura County, California, November 6, 2012.
Voting for the U.S. President: A Quiz
Read Next
Election - Button that says Vote. Badge pin stars and stripes politics campaign
Why Are U.S. Elections Held on Tuesdays?
Artwork for themes for Pro-Con articles.
Pro and Con: Electoral College
Artwork for themes for Pro-Con articles.
Pro and Con: Election Day Holiday
Artwork for themes for Pro-Con articles.
Pro and Con: Voting Machines
Women casting their vote in New York City, c. 1920s. At Fifty-sixth and Lexington Avenue, the women voters showed no ignorance or trepidation, but cast their ballots in a businesslike way that bespoke study of suffrage."
Voting in the U.S.A.
Discover
Shah Jahan. Taj Mahal. Mughal architecture. Emperor Shah Jahan fifth Mughal Emperor (reigned 1628-1658) India, Himachal Pradesh, Basohli or Jammu and Kashmir, Mankot, circa 1690 Drawings; Opaque watercolor, gold, and ink on paper (see notes)
6 Important Mughal Emperors
Battle of the Alamo from "Texas: An Epitome of Texas History from the Filibustering and Revolutionary Eras to the Independence of the Republic, 1897. Texas Revolution, Texas revolt, Texas independence, Texas history.
6 Wars of Independence
Illustration for Demystified "How Dangerous is Quicksand"
How Deadly Is Quicksand?
pg 229Nazi parade features a banner proclaiming, "Death to Marxism."The possibility of a peaceful Germany after World War I was precluded entirely by the terms of the Versailles Treaty and theintransigent hostility of France and England. Stripped of indu
Were the Nazis Socialists?
Candles Burning On Table In Church
What Is the Most Widely Practiced Religion in the World?
illustration of the walking titanosaurus, Patagotitan mayorum
Titanosaurs: 8 of the World's Biggest Dinosaurs
Lusitania sinking, illustration from The War of the Nations (New York), December 31, 1919. World War I, WWI. This image is one of three on the page. (See source file for the other two.)
7 of the World’s Deadliest Shipwrecks

election: Facts & Related Content

verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/facts/election-political-science
Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Canada election: Carney confirms Liberal candidate who made China bounty comment will stay on the ballot • Mar. 31, 2025, 5:08 AM ET (CBC)
Canada election: Carney facing mounting pressure to drop candidate over China bounty comment • Mar. 31, 2025, 4:11 AM ET (CBC)
Trump, Carney Talk About New Deal, Plan Meeting After Canada’s Election • Mar. 29, 2025, 5:35 AM ET (Bloomberg.com)

Facts

Also Known As periodic election • vote

Photos and Videos

2008 Canadian federal election results
Afghans voting, 2009
Polling place
Australian ballot
Lincoln-Hamlin election poster
The difference between a primary and caucus, explained
What is a midterm election?
What is Super Tuesday?
Understand the importance of electoral exit polling after an election
Know about electoral opinion polling and how to get an accurate opinion poll
See All Videos, Images and Interactives →

Related Topics and References

Topics
Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Vargas, 1951
Getúlio Vargas
president of Brazil
Roh Tae-Woo
Roh Tae-Woo
president of South Korea
Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg
Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg
German statesman
A Republican fixture
James Baker
American statesman
Farley, James A.
James A. Farley
American politician
Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola
Nigerian entrepreneur and politician
Daugherty, Harry Micajah
Harry Micajah Daugherty
American lawyer and political manager
Mo Udall
American politician
Louis Harris
American journalist and pollster
Mark Hanna
Mark Hanna
American industrialist
Luitpold, detail from a portrait by Friedrich August von Kaulbach, 1902; in the Bayerische Staatsgemaldesammlungen, Munich
Luitpold
prince regent of Bavaria
John Jebb
British religious and social reformer
Johan Rudolf Thorbecke
prime minister of the Netherlands
Larry O’Brien
American politician
Elmo Roper
American pollster
Sáenz Peña
Roque Sáenz Peña
president of Argentina
Al Raby
American civil rights activist
Catherine Helen Spence
Catherine Helen Spence
Australian author
Nicholas II
Nicholas II
pope
V. O. Key, Jr.
American political scientist

Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Election - Voters in polling station voting in 2012 Presidential Election, Ventura County, California, November 6, 2012.
Voting for the U.S. President: A Quiz
Demystified
Election - Button that says Vote. Badge pin stars and stripes politics campaign
Why Are U.S. Elections Held on Tuesdays?