plurality
ploo-RAL-uh-tee
/plʊəˈræləti/
The candidate or vote total that receives the largest number of votes in an election, but not necessarily an absolute majority (more than 50%).
Crucial distinction: a majority means over 50%, whereas a plurality simply means having more votes than any other single competitor.
The story behind the word. Derived from Latin 'plus' (more), 'plurality' entered Late Middle English meaning the state of being plural or numerous. In British ecclesiastical law, it referred to holding more than one benefice simultaneously. By the 19th century, American political usage adapted it to denote receiving the most votes when no single candidate hit an absolute majority.
Word relationships
- relative majority: 'Relative majority' is a synonym commonly used in European political science to describe winning the most votes without reaching 50%.
- absolute majority: Receiving strictly more than 50% of the total votes cast.
- minority: Holding less than the leading portion of votes.
Commonly confused with
- majority: A majority requires more than 50% (50%+1); a plurality only requires more votes than any other single competitor.
Word family
- plural (adjective): Denoting more than one.
- pluralism (noun): A system where multiple groups coexist.
Collocations
- win a plurality
- plurality vote
- plurality system
- secure a plurality
Idioms & expressions
- plurality rule
Example sentences
- "He won the primary with a plurality of thirty-five percent of the vote." Electoral commentary
- "In a multi-candidate field, a candidate can secure office with merely a plurality of votes." Political science discussion
Memory hook
PLURAL-ity = the winner among a PLURAL (multiple) group of choices, even without 50%. First place in votes, even if under 50%.
When not to use
Do not use 'plurality' if a candidate received more than half of all votes cast; use 'majority' instead.
Fun facts
- The US 'first-past-the-post' electoral system is formally known in political science as a 'single-member plurality' system.
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