In an election, the winner is the candidate who receives the most votes but does not necessarily obtain a majority. What is this called?

• A. Majority
• B. Plurality
• C. Runoff
• D. Proportional representation

Answer: (B)

This describes plurality: in a single-winner election, the winner is the candidate who gets the most votes, even if that total is not more than half of all votes. A majority would require more than 50%, so a candidate can win with a plurality without reaching a true majority. Runoff elections are used in some systems to obtain a majority if no candidate meets it, whereas proportional representation is a different method where seats (not a single winner) are allocated roughly in proportion to the vote shares. For example, if three candidates split the vote—40%, 35%, and 25%—the first candidate wins in a plurality system even though they do not have a majority.