Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A body of qualified voters.
  • noun The dignity or territory of an elector of the Holy Roman Empire.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The whole body of electors; the aggregate of citizens entitled to vote.
  • noun The dignity of an elector in the Roman-German empire.
  • noun The territory of an elector in Germany.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The territory, jurisdiction, or dignity of an elector, as in the old German empire.
  • noun The whole body of persons in a nation or state who are entitled to vote in an election, or any distinct class or division of them.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The collective people of a country, state, or electoral district who are entitled to vote.
  • noun The geographic area encompassing an electoral district.
  • noun The dominion of an Elector in the Holy Roman Empire.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the body of enfranchised citizens; those qualified to vote

Etymologies

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Examples

  • One thing that pervades the electorate is the feeling that politicians can't be trusted.

    focus and discipline 2009

  • One thing that pervades the electorate is the feeling that politicians can't be trusted.

    Politics 2010

  • I hope that the electorate is as wise as we were when we denied him the governor's seat ...

    Reacting to Rossi « PubliCola 2010

  • One thing that pervades the electorate is the feeling that politicians can't be trusted.

    focus and discipline 2009

  • And they'll do it because: 1. the party of a first-term president usually loses seats in Congress in the midterm elections; 2. the electorate is angry; and 3. the voters who helped put Barack Obama in the White House probably won't show up at the polls in sufficient numbers to blunt the oncoming tsunami.

    My memo to blacks: vote! Jonathan Capehart 2010

  • The big middle of the electorate is aligned with Republican sentiment on those particular issues.

    With 2010 Behind Us, A Look Ahead To 2012 2010

  • But there are signs that the Tory party has been both damaged by the expenses scandal more than they care to admit and that the electorate is as yet not in the least bit persuaded that Cameron and Osborne have got what it takes.

    Tory Dishonour 2009

  • But there are signs that the Tory party has been both damaged by the expenses scandal more than they care to admit and that the electorate is as yet not in the least bit persuaded that Cameron and Osborne have got what it takes.

    Archive 2009-06-14 2009

  • The fact that Tuesday's electorate is far more conservative than the last midterm electorate in 2006 is a sign of how mobilized the right was this year, and the Tea Party had something to do with that.

    The House/Senate split and the Tea Party paradox E.J. Dionne 2010

  • Shaping the electorate is an important part of midterm election strategy, which is why the president's team is so focused on those 2008 first-time or newer voters younger than 30.

    New Post-Kaiser-Harvard poll highlights Democrats' problem with senior voters Dan Balz 2010

Comments

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  • In Australia it's also used with a geographical meaning, ie. the district from which a candidate is elected.

    September 25, 2008

  • How fascinating. In Australia, it's popularly known as an electorate (although the AEC calls it a division), in Canada it's a riding, in the UK it's a constituency, and in the US it's a district.

    February 10, 2009