Majoritarian representation
Encyclopedia
A majoritarian voting system is an electoral method which gives the right to appoint all the representatives to the majority
of the electors, denying representation to all minorities. Historically the first electoral method to be used, it was later progressively modified or eliminated, due to its perceived non-democratic effects.
launched a theory which was later assumed by many Roman
thinkers who said that quod maior pars curiae efficit, pro eo habetur ac si omnes egerint (the decision taken by the majority of the senators is valid as it would be approved by all). Jean-Jacques Rousseau
, consequently to his concept of general will
, said that la voix du plus grand nombre oblige toujours tous les autres (the voice of the greater number ever forces all people). Adhémar Esmein
said that if the entire country was a single constituency, the electoral majority would have the right to appoint all the deputies, as it appoints the head of the executive power; even in its extreme consequencies, this system does not cause an injustice to the minority, because the majority obtains no more than its right.
differences arose. Corrections were worldwide progressively introduced in two senses:
majoritarian representation is no longer used for national elections, while it is sometimes still used for local elections organised on non-partisan bases.
Residual usage in several multi-member constituencies is reduced to the election of the Electoral college
of the President of the United States
. Block voting is also used to elect a part of the assemblies in the regional elections in Italy
and France
: in this cases, the majoritarian quota is one of two parts of an additional member system
.
Majority
A majority is a subset of a group consisting of more than half of its members. This can be compared to a plurality, which is a subset larger than any other subset; i.e. a plurality is not necessarily a majority as the largest subset may consist of less than half the group's population...
of the electors, denying representation to all minorities. Historically the first electoral method to be used, it was later progressively modified or eliminated, due to its perceived non-democratic effects.
Theory
The majoritarian right was upheld by a large and important group of scholars. AristotleAristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
launched a theory which was later assumed by many Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
thinkers who said that quod maior pars curiae efficit, pro eo habetur ac si omnes egerint (the decision taken by the majority of the senators is valid as it would be approved by all). Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
, consequently to his concept of general will
General will
The general will , made famous by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, is a concept in political philosophy referring to the desire or interest of a people as a whole. As used by Rousseau, the "general will" is identical to the rule of law, and to Spinoza's mens una.The notion of the general will is wholly...
, said that la voix du plus grand nombre oblige toujours tous les autres (the voice of the greater number ever forces all people). Adhémar Esmein
Adhémar Esmein
Adhémar Esmein was a French jurist.After briefly teaching at Douai, Esmein became professor of legal history and constitutional law at Paris. From 1898 until his death, he also taught canon law at the École pratique des hautes études.Esmein authored numerous textbooks on the history of French...
said that if the entire country was a single constituency, the electoral majority would have the right to appoint all the deputies, as it appoints the head of the executive power; even in its extreme consequencies, this system does not cause an injustice to the minority, because the majority obtains no more than its right.
Decline
Quite undisputed until the first half of the 19th century, the classic majoritarian system, sometimes referred as block voting, began to be more and more criticized when great ideologicalIdeology
An ideology is a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things , as in common sense and several philosophical tendencies , or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to...
differences arose. Corrections were worldwide progressively introduced in two senses:
- a first possibility was to reduce the size of the constituencies, so to divide the election in many local contests, and consequently increase the possibility for the minority to win in some areas. At-largeAt-LargeAt-large is a designation for representative members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent the whole membership of the body , rather than a subset of that membership...
elections were substituted by many multi-member constituencies and, finally, by single-winner electoral districtElectoral districtAn electoral district is a distinct territorial subdivision for holding a separate election for one or more seats in a legislative body...
s; - a second possibility was to introduce corrections even still voting at-largeAt-LargeAt-large is a designation for representative members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent the whole membership of the body , rather than a subset of that membership...
or, at least, in multi-member constituencies:- the limited votingLimited VotingLimited voting is a voting system in which electors have fewer votes than there are positions available. The positions are awarded to the candidates who receive the most votes absolutely...
system allowed the electors to vote a number of candidates which was lower than the contesting seats; - the cumulative votingCumulative votingCumulative voting is a multiple-winner voting system intended to promote more proportional representation than winner-take-all elections.- History :...
system allowed the electors to concentrate their full share of votes on fewer candidates; - the single non-transferable voteSingle non-transferable voteThe single non-transferable vote or SNTV is an electoral system used in multi-member constituency elections.- Voting :In any election, each voter casts one vote for one candidate in a multi-candidate race for multiple offices. Posts are filled by the candidates with the most votes...
was the extreme of the limited vote, the elector having a single choice in a multi-member race; - the preferential block votingPreferential block votingPreferential block voting is a majoritarian voting system for electing several representatives from a single multimember constituency. Unlike the single transferable vote, preferential block voting is not a method for obtaining proportional representation, and instead produces similar results to...
system allowed the electors to rank the candidates, imposing a quota to be elected; - the party-list votingParty-list proportional representationParty-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...
system, which established proportional representationProportional representationProportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
, fully abandoning the majoritarian criterion.
- the limited voting
Current usage
Nowadays, at-largeAt-Large
At-large is a designation for representative members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent the whole membership of the body , rather than a subset of that membership...
majoritarian representation is no longer used for national elections, while it is sometimes still used for local elections organised on non-partisan bases.
Residual usage in several multi-member constituencies is reduced to the election of the Electoral college
Electoral college
An electoral college is a set of electors who are selected to elect a candidate to a particular office. Often these represent different organizations or entities, with each organization or entity represented by a particular number of electors or with votes weighted in a particular way...
of the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. Block voting is also used to elect a part of the assemblies in the regional elections in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
: in this cases, the majoritarian quota is one of two parts of an additional member system
Additional Member System
The Additional Member System is the term used in the United Kingdom for the mixed member proportional representation voting system used in Scotland, Wales and the London Assembly....
.