stalking horses

Noun

stalking horse (plural stalking horses)

1. (dated) A horse used as cover by a hunter stalking game.
2. (idiomatic) A candidate put forward to serve a hidden, ulterior purpose in a political campaign, such as testing the field for another potential candidate by gauging voter sentiment or covertly helping another candidate by attracting voters away from a third candidate.
   • The Ministry had their candidate, a stalking-horse, useful only to receive the purely Ministerial votes. The votes, thus divided, gave no result.1842, Honoré de Balzac, chapter 8, in Ellen Marriage, transl., Albert Savarus
3. (broadly, idiomatic) A person, thing, or expedient used in a deceptive manner, to achieve some hidden purpose.
   • Do you think my daughter […] fit for nothing but to be a stalking horse, to stand before you, while you take aim at my wife?1694, William Congreve, The Double-Dealer, act 2, scene 4

   Synonyms:

   pretext, ruse

4. the first bid on a bankrupt company, which sets the low bar for further bidding
   • Eddie Bauer, which has 371 stores in North America, is pursuing a sale to CCMP through what is known as a 363 sale process in bankruptcy court. A judge would need to approve the sale, and other potential bidders could emerge. CCMP, as a so-called stalking horse bidder, is entitled to a $5 million...2009 June 17, Stephanie Rosenbloom, Michael J. de la Merced, “Eddie Bauer Files for Bankruptcy”, in The New York Times, retrieved 06 Apr 2026