B. An instrument, usually a piece of paper, used for casting a vote.
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to pronunciationLegal Definition -
1. An instrument, usually a paper or ball, used for casting a vote. 2. The system of choosing officers by a recorded vote, usually by marking a paper. 3. A vote in a series of one or more votes that is not conclusive until one candidate attains the necessary majority or supermajority <the candidate was nominated on the 21st ballot>. 4. A list of candidates running for office <four candidates are on the ballot>.
Black's Law Dictionary® Eighth Edition © 2004
Editor's Note -
Ballot Box is the locked box into which ballots are deposited.
To cast a ballot means "to vote".
Current Usage -
In the Jan. 29 Florida vote, 1.7 million Democrats cast ballots. Clinton won 50 per cent of the vote and Obama gained 33 per cent.
In the Jan. 15 Michigan vote, more than 600,000 Democrats voted, but Clinton was the only major candidate who remained on the ballot.
She won 55 per cent of the vote and 40 per cent voted "uncommitted."
That made a resolution more problematic and her campaign argued that the uncommitted should be just that under party rules – uncommitted.
The Obama camp argued that those votes were destined for the Illinois senator and said such a flawed vote should only result in the state's 128 delegates being split evenly between the two remaining candidates.
The committee agreed on a compromise to split the difference, allowing Clinton to take 69 delegates and Obama 59. Each delegate would get half a vote at the convention in Denver this summer, according to the deal.
They also agreed to seat the Florida delegation based on the outcome of the January primary, with 105 pledged delegates for Clinton and 67 for Obama, but with each delegate getting half a vote as a penalty.
Both states were penalized for leapfrogging ahead and holding early primaries in a window the party had reserved for Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.
Read More "Clinton campaign all but ends in ballroom" by Tim Harper TheStar.com June 01, 2008