paper candidate

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paper candidate

/ˈpeɪpə ˈkændɪdət/ UK
/ˈpeɪpɚ ˈkændɪdeɪt/ US
/-dɪt/ US

noun paper candidates

An election candidate with little chance of winning, who runs a minimal or no campaign, and who is added to the ballot for publicity, to increase the number of candidates standing and/or try to ensure their party has a candidate in every electoral district. Mr. Kent. I never knew of any actual Democratic opponent to a Republican candidate for Congress in Philadelphia for a number of years, but there may have been some "paper candidate" set up.

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noun candidate with little chance of winning

Français	poteau

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MLA

"paper candidate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/paper%20candidate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

paper candidate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/paper%20candidate

Chicago

"paper candidate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/paper%20candidate.

BibTeX

@misc{paper_candidate_2026,
  title = {paper candidate},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/paper%20candidate},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}