Editing Caucus (section)

{{short description|Meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement}}
{{About|political meetings|the geographic region between Western Asia and Eastern Europe|Caucasus|the purported ancestor of Caucasians|Caucas}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{party politics}}

A '''caucus''' is a group or meeting of supporters or members of a specific [[political party]] or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.

The term originated in the [[United States]], where it can refer to a meeting of members of a political party to nominate candidates, plan policy, etc., in the [[United States Congress]], or other similar representative organs of government. It has spread to certain [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] countries, including [[Australia]], [[Canada]], [[New Zealand]], and [[South Africa]], where it generally refers to a regular meeting of all [[members of Parliament]] (MPs) who belong to a [[parliamentary party]]: a party caucus may have the ability to elect or dismiss the party's [[parliamentary leader]]. The term was used historically in the [[United Kingdom]] to refer to the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]]'s internal system of management and control.