POLYAS Election Glossary
We provide explanations and background information on elections, voting rights and digital democracy
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Majority Vote
A majority vote means that a proposition is selected by the majority of voters from a set of alternatives.
In a majority vote, candidates with most votes in a constituency can enter Parliament. The voting process is suitable for electing direct representatives, which is why it is often used with direct elections.
Relative and absolute majortiy
With relative majority, a candidate has to obtain the most votes, or more votes than the other candidates in order to win the elections.
With absolute majority, a candidate must obtain over a half of the votes cast, or 50% plus 1 votes.
The majority vote is one of the two main types of election systems: the opposite of a majority vote is proportional representation.
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