general election

noun

U.S. Politics.
  1. a regularly scheduled local, state, or national election in which voters elect officeholders.Compare primary(def 15).
  2. a state or national election, as opposed to a local election.
British. an election, which must be held at any time within five years of the last election, in which constituents elect members of the House of Commons.
Compare by-election.

Origin of general election

An Americanism dating back to 1710–20

Words nearby general election

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Example sentences from the Web for general election

British Dictionary definitions for general election

general election

noun

an election in which representatives are chosen in all constituencies of a state
US a final election from which successful candidates are sent to a legislative body Compare primary
US and Canadian (in the US) a national or state election or (in Canada) a federal or provincial election in contrast to a local election