Ajay Kumar at 06:06, 18 August 2023

2023-08-18T06:06:16Z

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{{Short description|Prospective recipient of an award or position}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Redirect|Nominee|the financial term|Nominee account}}
{{more citations needed|date=May 2012}}
A '''candidate''', or '''nominee''', is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example:
* to be [[election|elected]] to an [[official|office]] — in this case a [[Preselection|candidate selection]] procedure occurs.
* to receive membership in a [[group (sociology)|group]]

"[[Nomination]]" is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to an office by a political party,<ref name=Definition>''Judicial and Statutory Definitions of Words and Phrases,'' Volume 1, Edition 2, West Publishing Company, 1914, [https://books.google.com/books?id=NGU8AAAAIAAJ&dq=nominee+candidate+definitions+of+words&pg=PA558 p. 588] [https://books.google.com/books?id=MXE8AAAAIAAJ&dq=nominee+candidate+definitions&pg=PA618 p. 618]</ref> or the bestowing of an honor or award. This person is called a "nominee",<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nominee|title=Nominee|publisher=Merriam Webster|access-date=2012-11-07}}</ref> though nominee often is used interchangeably with "candidate". A presumptive nominee is a person or organization believes that the nomination is inevitable or likely. The act of being a candidate in a race for either a party nomination or for electoral office is called a "candidacy".<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/candidacy?show=0&t=1342024814|title=Candidacy|publisher=Merriam Webster|access-date=2012-11-07}}</ref> Presumptive candidate may be used to describe someone who is predicted to be a formal candidate.

==Etymology==
''Candidate'' is a derivative of the [[Latin]] {{wikt-lang|la|candidus}} (‘shining white’).<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/candidate|title=Candidate|publisher=Merriam Webster|access-date=2012-11-07}}</ref> In [[Ancient Rome]], people running for political office would usually wear [[toga]]s chalked and bleached to be bright white at [[public speaking|speeches]], [[debate]]s, [[Political convention|conventions]], and other public [[ceremony|functions]].<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=candidate&searchmode=none|title=Candidate|publisher=Online Etymology Dictionary|access-date=2012-11-07}}</ref>

==Candidates for church membership==
Individuals who wish to be received into the [[church membership|membership]] of the [[Catholic Church]] who have been [[baptism|baptized]] in another [[mainstream Christian]] denomination are known as ''candidates'' and their reception into the Catholic Church is done through a [[Profession of faith (Christianity)|profession of faith]], followed by the reception of [[Holy Communion]] and [[Confirmation]].<ref name="UD2021">{{cite web |title=Catechumen or Candidate? |url=https://udayton.edu/ministry/liturgy/becoming_catholic/cathecumen.php |publisher=[[University of Dayton]] |access-date=12 June 2021 |language=English}}</ref> In contrast, those persons who have never received the sacrament of baptism are canonically considered non-Christians and if they are preparing to become a member of the Catholic Church, they are known as [[catechumen]]s.<ref name="UD2021"/>

==Candidates in elections==
{{Political campaigning}}
In the context of elections for [[public office]] in a representational partisan democracy, a candidate who has been selected by a [[political party]] is normally said to be the nominee of that party. The party's selection (that is, the nomination) is typically accomplished either based on one or more [[primary election]]s according to the rules of the party and any applicable election [[law]]s.<ref name=Definition/>

Candidates are called "[[incumbent]]s" if they are already serving in the office for which they are seeking re-election, or "challengers", if they are seeking to replace an incumbent.

In the context of elections for public office in a [[direct democracy]], a candidate can be nominated by any eligible person—and if parliamentary procedures are used, the nomination has to be seconded, i.e., receive agreement from a second person.

In some non-partisan representative systems (e.g., administrative elections of the [[Baháʼí Faith]]), no nominations (or campaigning, electioneering, etc.) take place at all, with voters free to choose any person at the time of voting—with some possible exceptions such as through a minimum age requirement—in the jurisdiction. In such cases, it is not required (or even possible) that the members of the electorate be familiar with all of the eligible persons in their area, though such systems may involve indirect elections at larger geographic levels to ensure that some first-hand familiarity among potential electees can exist at these levels (i.e., among the elected delegates).

===''Spitzenkandidat''===
{{See also|President of the European Commission#Spitzenkandidat}}
In [[German politics]], the person at the head of an [[electoral list]] is called the ''Spitzenkandidat'' ("lead candidate"). By convention, this means that this person (normally the [[party leader]]) will be elected to lead the government if their party wins the election. Various other countries with a parliamentary democracy have the same system.

In 2014, the major groups represented in the [[European Parliament]] and the [[European Council]] agreed to apply this process to determine the next [[President of the European Commission]], as a way of the Council "taking account of the results of the European Parliament election" as required by the Union treaties. This led to the appointment and confirmation of [[Jean-Claude Juncker]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Commission's Spitzenkandidat process at risk|url=https://www.politico.eu/article/spitzenkandidat-jean-claude-juncker-race-with-no-rules-eu-leaders-brace-for-clash-over-2019-elections/|access-date=14 February 2018|work=POLITICO|date=1 February 2018}}</ref>

===Presumptive candidate===
The term "presumptive candidate" or "prospective candidate" is sometimes used to describe a person who has not officially become a candidate but is considered very likely to in the future.

==See also==

* [[Age of candidacy]]
* [[Paper candidate]]
* [[Parachute candidate]]
* [[Perennial candidate]]
* [[Star candidate]]
* [[Write-in candidate]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Elections]]

Candidate - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 06:06, 18 August 2023