Why using <meter> tag in HTML5 ? what is an advantage of using it?

Meter tag is used to measure something. i.e polling votes, percentages etc. Suppose you have to show up a bar showing the percentage of votes in a poll. no need to embed some rocket science to fill-up the bar with different color. and size (on changing the vote numbers). Simply put the meter tag and use its attributes 'min, max, and value' to do that bar filling and size for you.