Plurality (voting)

Plurality (voting)

In North American English, the term plurality, also called relative majority used in the context of voting, refers to the largest number of votes to be received by any candidate (or any proposal in a referendum). It is contrasted with an absolute majority, or simple majority, which is more than half of the votes. In other words, in a race contested by more than two candidates, plurality occurs when one candidate receives the most votes but not necessarily more than half of the votes, while in a majority election a candidate wins if it receives over half of the votes. When no candidate receives a majority in the first round of voting, a two-round system or ranked voting system can be used to choose a winner.

Systems allowing plurality election are more vulnerable to corruption using the spoiler effect than systems which require a majority.