Positions at a glance
Supporters
The terms "strategic voting" and "tactical voting" are often used interchangeably, but some scholars distinguish between them. Strategic voting broadly refers to any vote cast to influence the outcome favorably, including supporting a less preferred viable candidate. Tactical voting may specifically imply voting to maximize the Impact of one's vote, such as in coalition-building contexts or to send a political signal. However, in everyday usage, both describe the practice of voting against one's first preference to prevent an unwanted candidate's victory.
Opponents
Strategic voting occurs when voters cast their ballots not for their favorite candidate, but for a less preferred candidate who has a better chance of winning against someone they strongly oppose. Instead of voting sincerely for their top choice, voters weigh the likelihood of each candidate's success and choose the one most capable of preventing an undesirable outcome. This behavior often emerges in electoral systems where only one winner is chosen, such as First-Past-The-Post systems, where splitting votes among similar candidates can lead to the election of a less favored candidate.
Research it like a delegate
Research on modeldiplomat.com
Ask a follow-up about Strategic Voting
Open a cited briefing in Model Diplomat search — timelines, positions, and sources you can use in committee or exam answers.
Start research on Strategic VotingExample
In the 2019 UK general election, many voters chose the Labour Party over their preferred smaller parties to prevent the Conservative Party from winning a majority.
Sources
Keep learning