The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 4 letter word FREE VOTE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
F
R
E
E
V
O
T
E
More clues leading to the result FREE VOTE
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "In which one chooses not to be whipped?" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case in which one chooses not to be whipped? = free vote.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.