What does balloting mean?
Balloting is the noun form describing the act or process of voting, most commonly by means of ballots — printed slips on which voters mark their choices privately. It appears frequently in formal contexts: elections, union negotiations, committee decisions, and organizational governance. The term carries connotations of procedure and fairness; phrases such as 'secret balloting' emphasize that votes remain confidential, a principle considered central to modern democratic practice. Balloting can also refer to individual rounds of vote-taking, as when a convention holds repeated balloting until one candidate secures a majority. The word derives from the Italian 'ballotta', meaning a small ball used historically for voting, which gives the practice its name. Understanding balloting is useful for anyone following civic affairs, parliamentary language, or institutional decision-making, where it signals a deliberate, structured method of collective choice rather than informal consensus.
nounThe action or process of voting, typically by means of ballots (printed slips or marked lists), especially in elections or formal decision-making.
- The act or process of casting votes in an election or formal decision-making procedure, often by secret written ballot.
- A round or instance of such vote-taking, as in successive balloting rounds at a convention.
"The union held a secret balloting of its members to decide whether to accept the new contract."
"Members were invited to participate in the balloting by mail before the deadline."
"After several rounds of balloting, no candidate had secured the required majority."
Rarely pluralized; usually treated as a mass/process noun. Plural use appears only when referring to multiple distinct voting events.
"The committee's various ballotings over the decade are recorded in its minutes."
The word 'balloting' traces back to Italian 'ballotta' — little balls dropped into a container to vote, which is why casting a vote was literally once about dropping balls.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of balloting
Balloting derives from 'ballot', which entered English from the Italian 'ballotta', a diminutive of 'balla' meaning a small ball. In Renaissance Venice and other Italian city-states, voters deposited small balls into containers to cast votes secretly, and this method gave the English word both its form and its name. From there it developed into the broader sense of any structured voting process using marked papers or slips, with 'balloting' emerging as the verbal noun describing the activity itself.
Related word forms
How balloting is actually used
Formal and procedural in register; common in political, organizational, and legal contexts. Often used with modifiers indicating method, such as 'secret', 'absentee', or 'ranked-choice'.
Easily confused with balloting
A bulletin is an official brief news statement, whereas balloting refers to voting with ballots — the words merely share similar sounds.