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A majority, also known as a simple majority in the U.S., is a subset of a group that is more than half of the entire group. This should not be confused with a plurality, which is a subset having the largest number of parts. A plurality is not necessarily a majority, as the largest subset may be less than half of the entire group. In British English, majority and plurality are often used as synonyms; it can also refer to the margin of vote separating the first-place finisher from the second-place finisher, so that a candidate who wins by 1000 votes may be said to have received "a majority of 1000 votes". The term overall majority is used in British English to refer to the difference between the number of votes cast for the winner and the total number of votes cast for all other candidates. The term absolute majority is used to indicate more than fifty percent of the vote.
For example, in a hypothetical group of 40 athletes there are:
- 15 association football players
- 10 sprinters
- 9 marathon runners
- 6 table tennis players
In this group, a majority would consist of more than half the total number of athletes, or 21 athletes. The group of all ball sport players together (15 football players + 6 table tennis players = 21) comprise a majority. However, football players, 15 in number, comprise a plurality, not a majority. In British English usage, football players would be described as having a majority of 5 (15 - 10) over sprinters, no individual sport has an absolute majority or an overall majority, and ball players have an overall majority of 2 (21 - 19) over the other sports.
Parliamentary rules
In parliamentary procedure (the "rules of order" concerning the conduct of business in a deliberative body), the term 'majority' refers to "more than half." As it relates to a vote, a majority is more than half of the votes cast (noting that an abstention is simply the refusal to vote).
A common error is to list a majority as being "one more than half" or "fifty percent plus one". This is incorrect when there is an odd number of votes cast. When there are 51 votes cast, half is 25.5. Only 26 votes are needed, not 26.5 votes.
The definition of "majority vote" can differ, however, from one parliamentary authority to another. Robert's Rules of Order, (abbreviated RONR) defines a majority as being more than one half of the votes cast including votes cast for an ineligible candidate, or improper choice (e.g. a vote of "maybe" on a yes or no vote); these votes referred to as "illegal votes cast by legal voters." The Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure (abbreviated TSC) defines a majority as being more than half of the "legal" votes cast .
For example, assume that votes are cast for three people for an office, Mr. A, Ms. B, and Wimpy the Gerbil (who is ineligible). The vote totals are:
