What are candidates?

Candidates are people who want to be chosen for a job or a role, just like kids who want to be picked for a game.

Imagine you're playing tag at recess, and the teacher asks everyone to raise their hand if they want to be it. All the hands in the air are candidates, they’re trying to be it because they think it’s fun or maybe they just really like being the one who chases others. The teacher then picks one person randomly (or sometimes based on who raised their hand the fastest), and that person becomes it. That person was a candidate, just like you are when you raise your hand.

In real life, people can be candidates for jobs too. Like how you might want to be the leader of a team at recess, maybe you want to be the one who decides what game to play or who gets picked first. You’d be a candidate, and the other kids would vote on whether they think you're the best person for that job.

Sometimes, there are many candidates for one role, just like if 10 kids all wanted to be it. The teacher might pick one randomly, or maybe the kids get to choose. That’s how it works in real life too, people try to become leaders, presidents, teachers, or even astronauts by being candidates, and others decide who gets the job!