Candidate, Political

Abstract

A political candidate is the person who strives to win political offices, essentially through electoral procedures. The word originates from the Latin candidatus, "man in white," referring to the white robe (toga) that Romans standing for a public office used to wear, which symbolized the untarnished moral qualities that were considered to be the indispensable characteristics of a political man. David Easton's analytical framework (1965) offers the best way to approach the subject. The "candidate" can be located in the fragile interconnection point that joins the flow of demands and support from the environment to the political system. Before their (first) candidacy, all candidates are part of the political community. Then, as candidates, they play the role of input carriers. They are messengers carrying demands, who strive for the support of the voters and of the political community at large. Finally, if elected, they form part of the authorities who convert demands into outputs, that is, who make legally binding decisions. The input-output process involves some procedures and some "rules of the game" that, according to Easton, are part of the regime and regulate the processes leading to a member of the political community being selected as a candidate and, if elected, becoming part of the authorities.