The transfer of votes from one party to another. The actual transfer is complicated, so usually taken to mean between the top two parties in any seat or area.

The difference between the performance of a candidate or party at one election in comparison to a previous election.

An analysis of previous election results (in percentage terms) used to identify the shift in political support that would be required in electoral districts for seats to be won or lost at an election.

Swing in a British political context is a single figure used as an indication of the scale of voter change in a single constituency. It originated as a mathematical calculation for comparing the results of two constituencies. The term "swing" has a different meaning in Australia, which has a different voting system.

The term swing is used in Australia in a different sense from that employed in Britain, where the term originated (see Swing (politics)). For the Australian House of Representatives (and for the lower houses of the parliaments of all the states and territories except Tasmania and the ACT), Australia employs preferential voting in single-member constituencies. Under this system, voters number all the candidates on their ballot paper in the order of their preference.