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Politics & Government vocabulary · Elections and Voting

Run for office

Meaning in politics & government, with examples

phraseCore term

In politics & government, run for office means: To try to be elected to a public position, such as mayor, member of parliament or president, by standing as a candidate.

In Turkish: aday olmak, seçimlere girmek

How it is used

Mainly American English but widely understood. You run for office, run for president or run for mayor; you also run against an opponent and run on an issue or record. British English often uses stand for election or stand for parliament.

Example sentences

  1. She decided to run for office after ten years of community work.

  2. Young people who run for office often face high campaign costs.

Common collocations

  • run for president
  • run for mayor
  • run for re-election
  • run against
  • stand for election
  • candidateA person who is officially trying to be elected to a position, such as member of parliament, mayor or president.
  • campaignA planned series of activities, such as speeches, advertisements and meetings with voters, that a candidate or party carries out to win an election.
  • electionAn organized process in which people vote to choose a person or group for an official position, such as members of parliament, a president or a mayor.
  • incumbentThe person who currently holds an official position, especially one who is standing for election again against new candidates.

More terms: Elections and Voting

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