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In voting, a plurality is the largest number of votes to be received by any candidate or proposition when three or more choices are possible. Systems allowing plurality election are more vulnerable to corruption using spoiler candidates than systems which require a majority using runoff elections or preferential voting. With only two choices the winner would have a majority, barring a strong showing from a write-in. In American English (and also in Canadian usage), when there are more than two choices the candidate or proposition receiving the largest number of votes is said to have "a plurality".[1] The concept of plurality in voting can be contrasted with that of majority. A majority, in North American usage, is "more than half".[1] Combining these two concepts in a sentence makes it clearer, "A plurality of votes is a total vote received by a candidate greater than that received by any opponent but less than a 50 percent majority of the vote."[2] In British English, the word majority can often be used as a synonym of plurality, with the term absolute majority being used to refer to the narrower North American meaning.[3]
For example, an election of three candidates where 100 votes are cast, with Alice winning 40 votes, and Bob and Carol winning 31 and 29 votes respectively. A Briton might say "Alice won with the majority of votes", whereas a Canadian wishing to express the same sentiment would say "Alice won with a plurality." The Canadian would only describe Alice as winning with a majority if Alice won at least 51 votes.
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