stalking-horse
noun
- a horse, or a figure of a horse, used as cover by a hunter stalking game
- anything used to disguise or conceal intentions, schemes, or activities; blind
- Politics a person whose candidacy is advanced temporarily to conceal the actual choice or to divide the opposition
See stalking-horse in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(stôˈkĭng-hôrsˌ)
noun- Something used to cover one's true purpose; a decoy.
- A sham candidate put forward to conceal the candidacy of another or to divide the opposition.
a. A horse trained to conceal the hunter while stalking.
b. A canvas screen made in the figure of a horse, used for similar concealment.