Fair elections are an essential part of a working democracy. It's important to know the English words relating to elections when you read or hear the English-language news about an election. The recent US presidential election has been in the media a lot this month, and you may have heard many of the following words in news reports.

The verb "to vote" means "to choose" the person you are voting for: 

We try really hard to persuade people

that we're right,

and then people vote.

Captions 47-49, Barack Obama - On Trump Presidential Victory - Part 2

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There is also the noun "vote," and a synonym for a vote is a ballot. A ballot is also the actual paper that you use to write your vote on.

The place you go to vote is called a "poll":

When it comes to election day, the public go to the polls to vote for one presidential ticket.

Caption 66, US Elections - How Do They Work?

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But a "poll" is also a survey that asks people who they intend to vote for:

That supports Jeb Bush, who has been struggling in some polls.

Caption 19, ABC News - The Broncos Win Super Bowl 50

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The person who is running for political office is a candidate:

So the candidate with the most votes wins.

Caption 48, US Elections - How Do They Work?

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Candidates often confront each other before the election in a debate:

Remember, he was just on the stage with Joe Biden at that debate.

Caption 19, ABC News - President Trump and First Lady Test Positive for COVID-19

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If somebody has "been elected," it means that they got the most votes and won the election:

Senators, like members of the House of Representatives,

are also elected to their seats by the public.

Captions 42-43, US Elections - How Do They Work?

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When a candidate for US President has won the election in November, he does not take office until the 20th of January the following year. In the two and a half months before he takes office, he is called the "President-elect." After the 20th of January, he is called the "President" and the person who left office is called the "former President."

So I have instructed my team to follow the example

that President Bush's team set eight years ago

and work as hard as we can

to make sure that this is a successful transition

for the President-elect.

Captions 25-28, Barack Obama - On Trump Presidential Victory - Part 1

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Further Learning
Go to Yabla English and watch the US Elections: How Do They Work? video for a detailed description of the US national elections process.

In part 2 of this series, we look at how every language has words that standardly go together in stock phrases, also called "collocations." These are word combinations that are preferred by native speakers, and though there are other words that you could use to express the same thing, those other words might sound awkward or odd. For instance, you would usually say "a strong cup of tea." A "powerful cup of tea" or a "robust cup of tea" may have a very similar meaning, they sound odd to the ears of a native speaker. On the positive side, such word pairings sound very "normal," but they could also be criticized as being clichés when they are overused.

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Progress is usually made. This phrase sounds a little odd at first, as if "progress" were something that could be "made" in a factory, but what it means is that something or someone is improving:

You've made a little progress.

Caption 69, Barack Obama - on Trump presidential victory - Part 2

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I'm making great progress with the parents already.

Caption 16, Movie Trailers - The Boss Baby

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Money is often described as hard-earned, meaning that it was not inherited or acquired easily otherwise, but that someone had to work hard and long for it.

Don't hand over any more of your hard-earned money to these crooks.

Caption 22, Laurel & Hardy - Jitterbugs - Part 4

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People aren't lining up to trade their hard-earned money for your unnecessary product.

Captions 67-68, Nature Preservation - The Story of Bottled Water - Part 1

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When you want to take shower and use very little time in doing so, you take a quick shower. The meaning is the same as taking a "fast shower" or a "brief shower," but the standard expression uses the adjective "quick":

We have learned just for a quick shower, you just put the nozzle up there.

Captions 26-27, An apartment - in Japan

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You stand there and take a quick shower.

Caption 27, An apartment - in Japan

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Further Learning
Go to this page and see some other examples of standard English word combinations. Try to generally pay attention to the way words are combined by native English speakers and try to learn these phrases, since many are particularly unique to the language, such as the English phrase "to make up your mind" about something. See if you can find some examples of that phrase on Yabla English.