plurality

(noun)

A number of votes for a single candidate or position which is greater than the number of votes gained by any other single candidate or position voted for, but which is less than a majority of valid votes cast.

Related Terms

Examples of plurality in the following topics:

  • Winning an Election: Majority, Plurality, and Proportional Representation

    • Common voting systems are majority rule, proportional representation, or plurality voting with a number of criteria for the winner.
    • The most common system, used in Canada, the lower house (Lok Sabha) in India, the United Kingdom, and most elections in the United States, is simple plurality, first-past-the-post or winner-takes-all.
    • Common voting systems are majority rule, proportional representation, or plurality voting with a number of variations and methods such as first-past-the-post or preferential voting.
    • In political science, the use of the plurality voting system alongside multiple, single-winner constituencies to elect a multi-member body is often referred to as single-member district plurality (SMDP).
    • Compare and contrast the voting systems of majority rule, proportional representation and plurality voting

  • Organization of Interest Groups

    • Pluralism: This is based upon the understanding that pressure groups operate in competition with one another and play a key role in the political system.
    • Under neo-pluralism, a concept of political communities developed that is more similar to the British form of government
    • Neo-Pluralism: This is based on the concept of political communities in that pressure groups and other similar bodies are organised around a government department and its network of client groups.

  • Religious Freedom

    • Advocates for stronger separation of church and state emphasize the plurality of faiths and non-faiths in the country, and what they see as the broad guarantees of the Constitution.

  • The Powers of State Government

    • Most states have a plural executive, where several key members of the executive branch are directly elected by the people and serve alongside the Governor.

  • The Impact of Minor Parties

    • Although it is unlikely that a third party candidate will ever garner a plurality of the vote, they can influence the election by taking votes away from a major party candidate.

  • Public Interest Groups

    • One of the challenges, or criticisms, of public interest groups is the difficulty in defining a single idea of the public good in a society that values pluralism, such as the United States.

  • The Party in Government

    • This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from other parties in order to pass legislation and avoid being defeated on motions of no confidence.

  • Why Politics Matters

    • Methodological pluralism is a defining feature of contemporary political science.

  • Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the U.S.

    • The non-Hispanic White percentage (66% in 2008) tends to decrease every year, and this sub-group is expected to become a plurality of the overall U.S. population after the year 2050.
    • California is home to 4.5 million Asian Americans, whereas 495,000 live in Hawaii, where they compose the plurality of the islands' people – this is their largest share of any state.

  • Candidates for Congressional Elections

    • The winner is the candidate who receives a plurality of the popular vote.