popular vote
Americannoun
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the vote for a U.S. presidential candidate made by the qualified voters, as opposed to that made by the Electoral College.
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the vote for a candidate, issue, etc., made by the qualified voters, as opposed to a vote made by elected representatives.
Etymology
Origin of popular vote
An Americanism dating back to 1830–40
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the decades after World War II, German politics was dominated by the center-right Christian Democrats and center-left Social Democrats, whose combined share of the popular vote stood at 67% as recently as 2013.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026
Before discussing the Payne proposal further, let me describe Arizona’s long and unique history of putting methods of execution to a popular vote.
From Slate • Feb. 24, 2026
He reintroduced political parties and a free media, and was later endorsed by popular vote.
From BBC • Dec. 29, 2025
In the Buenos Aires election, the leading Peronist party, the Justicialists, won 47% of the popular vote.
From Barron's • Oct. 31, 2025
While Jackson won the popular vote, none of the five candidates in the running that year received enough electoral votes to win.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
