nominee vs candidate

nominee and candidate both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
nominee	Yes	No	No	No
candidate	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, nominee and candidate are synonyms defined as:

Other synonyms of nominee include campaigner.

nominee (noun)	candidate (noun)
a politician who is running for public office	someone who is considered for something (for an office or prize or honor etc.)
	a politician who is running for public office