A policy-based routing route-map contains multiple sequential clauses that could match a packet. How does the router apply those clauses?

Policy-Based Routing (PBR) route-maps are processed sequentially, from the lowest sequence number to the highest. When a packet is evaluated against a route-map, the router checks each clause in order. The first clause that matches the packet's criteria (defined by match commands) will have its associated set actions applied to the packet. Once a match is found and actions are taken, the router stops processing the route-map for that specific packet. This top-down, first-match-wins behavior is fundamental to how route-maps function for PBR. Evaluating all clauses and combining actions is incorrect as only the first match is acted upon. Evaluating bottom-up or randomly selecting a clause would lead to unpredictable and non-deterministic routing behavior, which is not how PBR is designed.