A statement by a potential candidate that they will never run for election to an office The term derives from the Sherman pledge, a remark made by American Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman when he was being considered as a possible Republican candidate for the presidential election of 1884. He declined, saying “If drafted, I will not run; if nominated, I will not accept; if elected, I will not serve.”
Home / Questions / In American political jargon, what is a Shermanesque statement or a Sherman speech?