A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, and a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections.

A recall election is a procedure by which, in certain polities, voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of office has ended. Recalls appear in the constitution in ancient Athenian democracy. Even where they are legally available, recall elections are only commonly held in a small number of countries including Peru, Ecuador, and Japan. They are considered by groups such as ACE Electoral Knowledge Network as the most rarely used form of direct democracy.