A mandate is official permission or authority to do something, usually given by voters or a governing body. When a candidate wins an election by a large margin, people say they have a mandate from the voters to carry out the policies they campaigned on. The voters have essentially said, “Yes, we want you to do what you promised.”

The word also means a command or requirement that must be followed. A school might have a mandate that all students wear uniforms, or a government might issue a mandate requiring certain safety measures. These mandates aren't suggestions; they're rules with real consequences if you ignore them.

The strength of a mandate matters. A president who wins by just a few votes has less of a mandate than one who wins overwhelmingly, because the overwhelming victory shows clearer public support.

You might hear about the “Mandate of Heaven” in Chinese history, which was the ancient belief that rulers governed with divine approval. If a dynasty ruled poorly or lost power, people believed it had lost its mandate to rule.