Whip (politics)

In politics, a whip is a member of a political party in a legislature whose task is to ensure that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires. The term originated in the Parliament of the United Kingdom and derives from the "whipper-in" at a fox hunt.

Because legislatures typically only require a majority of the quorum in attendance, a majority party can be outvoted if a large number of its legislators are absent and the opposition is in full attendance. An important part of a government whip's job is to ensure that this situation never arises; sufficient majority legislators must be kept close enough to the legislature that an opposition block cannot be assembled by surprise. If the majority is slim, and the quorum cannot be busted by the departure of the majority legislators, this is difficult and can be exploited by the opposition to harass the majority.