The "iron vote" is a political term for a
voter
Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an electorate, can engage for the purpose of making a collective decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election campaigns. Democracies elect holde ...
that can be reliably counted on to vote for one party or another. This phrase was most notably used beginning as early as a decade ago in
Asian democratic elections, specifically
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
: Taiwanese (. These usually include strong supporters of
Taiwan independence or
Chinese unification.
[(chines]
the swift Iron vote of green faction in Kaohsiung
/ref>
The Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
(KMT) was defeated in 2000 elections
The following elections occurred in the year 2000.
Africa
* 2000 Ethiopian general election
* 2000 Ghanaian presidential election
* 1999–2000 Guinea-Bissau general election
* 2000–01 Ivorian parliamentary election
* 2000 Ivorian preside ...
by the loss of iron votes. The result shows that "iron vote" can only be taken as reference. People who strongly believe in their "iron vote" may have an unexpected outcome.
The same term is also used in Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
, referring to strong supporters of the pro-democracy camp or the pro-Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
camp.
A related term in United States politics
The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a b ...
is yellow dog Democrat
Yellow Dog Democrats is a political term that was applied to voters in the Southern United States who voted solely for candidates who represented the Democratic Party. The term originated in the late 19th century. These voters would allegedly "v ...
. The opposite is a swing voter.
See also
*Iron rice bowl
"Iron rice bowl" () is a Chinese term for an occupation with guaranteed job security. The Chinese term can be compared to the similar (but not identical) English concept of a "job for life". Traditionally, people considered to have such position ...
* Elections in Taiwan
*Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
References
External links
Adam Carr's Election ArchiveROC Central Election Commission
Politics of Taiwan
{{Taiwan-poli-stub