Add an accessible tooltip mechanism, and use it for the "Remember Me" login tooltip ( #55343 & #51006 )

[rutviksavsani]

Trac tickets:

• https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/51006 — Add a mechanism for accessible tooltips in core
• https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/55343 — Add Tooltip to "Remember Me" (WP Login Form)

Summary

#55343 needs a tooltip next to the Remember Me checkbox on wp-login.php, and the
ticket history makes it dependent on #51006 (a reusable accessible-tooltip
mechanism). This PR resolves both together:

1. Adds a small, reusable, accessible tooltip mechanism — wp_get_tooltip()
   plus a wp-tooltip stylesheet — built on the native Popover API + CSS anchor
   positioning, matching the final direction agreed in #51006.
2. Uses that mechanism to add the requested "Remember Me" tooltip on the login form, with
   filterable copy.

Approach

• Native Popover API drives all interaction — open/toggle, Esc, light-dismiss, focus
  return — so there is no JavaScript to ship or maintain.
• CSS anchor positioning (position-area: top) places the bubble above its toggle using the
  popover's implicit anchor, so multiple tooltips on one page each anchor to their own toggle
  with no per-instance IDs. Gated behind @supports (anchor-name: --a).
• Visual treatment (bubble, border, shadow, bordered-triangle arrow) mirrors the existing admin
  pointer (wp-pointer.css).
• wp_get_tooltip( $content, $args ) returns the markup (content-first signature, mirroring
  wp_get_admin_notice()); the login template echoes it. Single function, return-only — the
  same shape as wp_required_field_indicator().
• Tooltip copy on login is filterable via login_remember_me_help_text (return '' to remove).

Accessibility

Implements the accessible-tooltip specification from #51006 (comment #15) in full, and
targets WCAG 2.2:

• No role="tooltip", aria-haspopup, or aria-live.
• Supplemental content is associated with the trigger via aria-describedby pointing to a
  text-only element, so the description is the help sentence and nothing else.
• Focus does not move into the tooltip on open.
• Dismissable via Esc, click-outside, and a visible close button that returns focus to the
  trigger without re-opening it. Esc works in every engine.
• Close button and toggle are both 24×24 px — WCAG 2.2 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum).
• Bubble opens above the toggle, so the focused control is never covered.
• Visible focus ring using the admin theme colour, plus a transparent outline so focus stays
  visible in Windows High Contrast / forced-colors mode (2.4.7).
• Plain text only, no timeout, interactive source, no title attribute.
• Triggers and labels are translatable.

Files changed

File	Change
src/wp-includes/general-template.php	New wp_get_tooltip() — returns accessible tooltip markup.
src/wp-admin/css/wp-tooltip.css	New reusable wp-tooltip component stylesheet.
src/wp-includes/script-loader.php	Registers the wp-tooltip style and makes the login styles depend on it.
src/wp-login.php	Adds the filterable help text and renders the tooltip via wp_get_tooltip().
tests/phpunit/tests/general/wpGetTooltip.php	New unit tests for wp_get_tooltip().

Testing instructions

1. open WordPress admin login screen /wp-login.php.
2. A ? help icon appears after "Remember Me". Click it (or focus + Enter) → tooltip opens with
   the security copy.
3. Dismiss via the × button, Esc, or clicking outside.
4. Keyboard: Tab to the icon → Enter opens → Esc closes and focus returns to the icon.
5. Screen reader: focusing the icon announces the button name followed by the help sentence
   (not the word "Close"), and the bubble is not announced as a "tooltip".
6. Developer filter:

   add_filter( 'login_remember_me_help_text', fn() => 'Custom copy.' );
   add_filter( 'login_remember_me_help_text', '__return_empty_string' ); // removes the tooltip

7. Unit tests: npm run test:php -- --filter Tests_General_wpGetTooltip (7 tests).

Screenshots

Tooltip open, captured on each real engine:

Chromium:

Safari / W

ebKit :

Firefox :

---

Use of AI Tools

AI assistance: Yes
Tool: Claude Code
Model: Opus 4.8 with 1M context
Used for: Initial code skeleton and unit tests; final implementation and tests were reviewed and edited by me.

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This Pull Request is for code review only. Please keep all other discussion in the Trac ticket. Do not merge this Pull Request. See GitHub Pull Requests for Code Review in the Core Handbook for more details.

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