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Concept
Indirect election
Summary
An indirect election or hierarchical voting is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office (direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the oldest forms of elections and is used by many countries for heads of state (such as presidents), cabinets, heads of government (such as prime ministers), and/or upper houses. It is also used for some supranational legislatures.
Positions that are indirectly elected may be chosen by a permanent body (such as a parliament) or by a special body convened solely for that purpose (such as an electoral college).
In nearly all cases the body that controls the executive branch (such as a cabinet) is elected indirectly. This includes the cabinets of most parliamentary systems; members of the public elect the parliamentarians, who then elect the cabinet. Upper houses, especially in federal republics, are often indirectly elected, either by the corresponding lower house or cabinet. Similarly, supranational legislatures can be indirectly elected by constituent countries' legislatures or executive governments. The indirect democracy is run by electoral college or president.
An election can be partially indirect, for example in the case of indirect single transferable voting, where only eliminated candidates select other candidates to transfer their vote share to.
A head of state is the official leader and representative of a country. The head of state position can vary from ceremonial figurehead with limited power to powerful leader depending on the government structure and historical legacy of the country. For instance, in some cases heads of state inherit the position through a monarchy whereas others are indirectly or directed elected such as a presidents. Several examples are included below.
The President of the United States is elected indirectly. In a US presidential election, eligible members of the public vote for the electors of an Electoral College, who have previously pledged publicly to support a particular presidential candidate.
Official source
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