Ticket Splitting

Ticket splitting is a term that is used to describe voting for different parties when voters are provided with the opportunity to cast more than one vote at a time. By contrast, voters who vote for only one party are said to cast a straight-ticket. This definition applies to voting behavior in various institutional settings. Voters can cast split tickets when they are asked to elect different offices. Voting for a Republican candidate in an American presidential election while voting for a Democrat in the House contest is a case in point. Citizens can also cast split tickets when voting for only one institution. For example, in German federal parliamentary elections voters are asked to cast two votes that they are allowed to cast for ...