protest vote

American  

noun

1. a ballot cast for a candidate with a minimal chance of winning, to register dislike for the other candidates.

---

Etymology

Origin of protest vote

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

But his opponent, 43-year-old Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as Bobi Wine, has framed the election as a protest vote and cannily turned the national flag into a symbol of resistance.

From Barron's

Support for Reform might be thought to be simply a protest vote by an electorate fed up with slow growth, an ailing health service, and high levels of immigration.

From BBC

Could it be seen as a protest vote, I ask.

From BBC

Yulia Navalnaya described queuing for six hours outside the Russian embassy in Berlin as part of the protest vote campaign.

From BBC

He did not mention the war or the protest vote in his statement following his victory, but his campaign team will have surely heard the message loud and clear.

From BBC