straight ticket

American

noun

U.S. Politics.

a ballot on which all votes have been cast for candidates of the same party.
a ticket on which all the candidates nominated by a party are members of the party.

straight ticket British

noun

a ballot for all the candidates of one and only one political party Compare split ticket

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

straight ticket Idioms

All the candidates of a single political party, as in Are you going to vote a straight ticket again? [Mid-1800s] Also see split ticket.

Etymology

Origin of straight ticket

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

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.

But Tracy and her friend Karen Warford didn’t punch a straight ticket just out of party obligation; they were excited to vote for McGrath and enthusiastic about her candidacy.

From Salon • Nov. 7, 2018

WolfBard To be honest, I'd voted Republican before, never straight ticket, weighing the candidates.

From Time • Apr. 28, 2013

"A lot of people are voting straight ticket."

From Washington Post • Oct. 17, 2010

He has but one vote to cast; the problem of voting a straight ticket does not arise.

From Time Magazine Archive

He cannot vote a straight ticket by a single mark.

From Elements of Civil Government by Peterman, Alexander L.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023