# What is the definition of "majority". More than half? 50%+1? Both? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 5, 2024, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724 "2024-11-05T16:08:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/1 "2024-11-05T16:08:40Z")
Continuing from [here](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/828). The question is: is 50%+1 an equivalent definition of a majority which is more than half. Issues that did not enter into that discussion is weighted voting and being able to split your votes, e.g. 0.3 votes for A, 0.7 votes for B. Of note, as a parliamentarian I see this definition in a lot of organization rules & bylaws because they want fancier language than “a majority”. I contend that 50% + 1 is incorrect for a system where whole votes are counted since that definition would say 50 out of 99 votes is not a majority yet people in that other thread still argue about it. So in the interest of the posters in that thread I started this one. Let the arguing begin. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/2 "2024-11-05T16:15:34Z")
50 out of 99 is indeed within the criteria. It is 50.5%. That’s a majority by any definition of the term. Instead of thinking of it as “+1” as in one literal vote, think of it as “Is X greater than Y? If yes, then X is the majority.” So, 50 \> 49. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/3 "2024-11-05T16:17:20Z")
Parliamentarily, majority is more votes for the proposition than the total number of other votes. so 50-49 is majority **unless** the body has more than 99 able voting members and the rules call for a majority of the whole number of the body rather than of those voting. Numericlly, majority is **any** number greater than half, no matter the fraction. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/4 "2024-11-05T16:21:52Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > 50 out of 99 is indeed within the criteria. It is 50.5%. That’s a majority by any definition of the term. No and that’s my point. Using the 50%+1 “definition”, you need 50.5 votes or more for a majority. > [@JRDelirious](#): > > Majority is more votes for the proposition than the total number of other votes. And remembering abstentions are not votes so 2 votes for, 1 against, 10 abstain is still a majority vote in favor. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/5 "2024-11-05T16:22:01Z")
Shouldn’t majority be 50% + X where X \> 0? In other words, 501 votes of 1000 (50.1% of the votes) should be a majority, but 500 / 1000 isn’t. 500 / 999 is (50.05%). ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/6 "2024-11-05T16:23:02Z")
OK, then put another way, assuming there are only two options to choose from, then the only time there is **no** majority is an exact tie, such as 49-49. 50-49 then is a majority. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/7 "2024-11-05T16:25:34Z")
Yes. Majority should be the fraction that exceeds all other fractions together no matter what the dimensions of the fraction. 50.002% is still a majority. > [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > And remembering abstentions are not votes so 2 votes for, 1 against, 10 abstain is still a majority vote in favor. Unless a “majority of the whole number” rule is in effect. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/8 "2024-11-05T16:27:40Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > Shouldn’t majority be 50% + X where X \> 0? I thought about the definition of a majority as 50%+ε and I think it might be equivalent to “more than half”. But that is another issue, why come up with a fancy definition and not just say "more than half’ because those fancy definitions (hence this thread) are not always equivalent despite what people claim. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/9 "2024-11-05T16:30:32Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Unless a “majority of the whole number” rule is in effect. That would be a supermajority requirement. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/10 "2024-11-05T16:32:56Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > That would be a supermajority requirement The barest bottom of such. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/11 "2024-11-05T16:39:27Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Let the arguing begin. Ok. You ruined @WildaBeast’s interesting random fact with a useless argument over the definition of majority. 50% +1 is a perfectly useful description of getting the smallest possible majority of votes in a statewide election, and none of the readers was confused about the fact. There’s no evidence that the claim was 50.00000000000% of the vote +1. If we consider Wyoming, with approx 250,000 votes, a vote of 125,000 to 124,999 means 49.9998% +1 would be the winner, and I think we can agree to round that to 50%, just to not be ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![YamatoTwinkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/cc9497/32.png) [@YamatoTwinkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YamatoTwinkie)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/12 "2024-11-05T16:45:47Z")
Majority = 50% _ **rounded down to the nearest integer** _, +1 ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/13 "2024-11-05T16:52:21Z")
Majority = more than everything else (in that set) combined. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/14 "2024-11-05T17:20:59Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > 50% +1 is a perfectly useful description of getting the smallest possible majority of votes in a statewide election, No it is not. Again for 99 people the smallest majority is 50 votes - NOT 50.5 votes (round up?). Your definition excludes 50 out of 99 as a majority. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/15 "2024-11-05T17:22:00Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > > > That would be a supermajority requirement > > The barest bottom of such. Yes, but it is a meaningful distinction. The OP described a group with ninety-nine members. In such a group, fifty votes would be a majority but it would not be a 50%+1 supermajority. So we should recognize they are not two terms for the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/16 "2024-11-05T17:30:23Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > No it is not. > Again for 99 people the smallest majority is 50 votes - NOT 50.5 votes (round up?). > Your definition excludes 50 out of 99 as a majority. Which state will tally 99 votes this year? ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/17 "2024-11-05T17:35:11Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Which state will tally 99 votes this year? Why are you limiting this to states considering they use plurality. But my point still stands for any number of odd voters so if a state race requires a majority and 7,438,293 people vote you would say that they need 3,719,147.5 or more votes to be elected and (here is the error in your calculation) that they are NOT elected with only 3,719,147 votes. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/18 "2024-11-05T17:43:14Z")
Normally, in a ballot, each person can cast one vote, or abstain. That means the number of votes for any side will be an integer. If people or parties are allowed to cast fractional votes, then a rule calling for the smallest integer greater than 50% is not equivalent to a simple majority, because you can imagine a difference of 1/3 of a vote or something. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/19 "2024-11-05T17:46:00Z")
Let’s check those calculations. we agree that 3,719,147 is the winning number. That is 3,719,146 +1 3,719,146 / 7,438,293 = 49.99999% Your issue is that the statement 50% +1 is no good because the actual value is more like 49.99999% +1. In an omnibus fun fact thread in MPSIMS. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2024, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724/20 "2024-11-05T17:48:30Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Your issue is that the statement 50% +1 is no good because the actual value is more like 49.99999% +1. Nope. My issue is that a majority is more than half. Nothing fancy and no percentages unless you want to define majority \> 50%. But none of that +1 stuff. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definition-of-majority-more-than-half-50-1-both/1009724.md?page=2)