A double majority is a voting system which requires a
majority of votes according to two separate criteria. The mechanism is usually used to require strong support for any measure considered to be of great importance. Typically in legislative bodies, a double majority requirement exists in the form of a
quorum being necessary for legislation to be passed.
Examples in use
Australia
In
Australia,
constitutional
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these prin ...
changes must be passed at a
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
in a majority of states (4 of the 6), and by a majority of voters nationally. Prior to 1977, the votes of citizens in the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
and the
ACT did not affect the national or state-based count. After a Constitution Alteration put to referendum in 1977 and given vice-regal assent on 19 July 1977, Territorial votes contribute towards the national majority, but the Territories themselves do not count towards the majority of states.
Canada
Since the
patriation
Patriation is the political process that led to full Canadian sovereignty, culminating with the Constitution Act, 1982. The process was necessary because under the Statute of Westminster 1931, with Canada's agreement at the time, the British parl ...
of the
Canadian constitution
The Constitution of Canada (french: Constitution du Canada) is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents ar ...
in 1982, thorough
amending formulae for the constitution were adopted. Per the
Constitution Act, 1982
The ''Constitution Act, 1982'' (french: link=no, Loi constitutionnelle de 1982) is a part of the Constitution of Canada.Formally enacted as Schedule B of the ''Canada Act 1982'', enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Section 60 of t ...
, many amendments can be passed only by the
Parliament of Canada and a
two-thirds majority 2/3 may refer to:
* A fraction with decimal value 0.6666...
* A way to write the expression "2 ÷ 3" ("two divided by three")
* 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines of the United States Marine Corps
* February 3
* March 2
Events Pre-1600
* 537 – ...
of the
provincial legislatures, those provinces together representing at least 50% of the national population-–this is known as the 7/50 formula (as there were and are 10 provinces, so 7 constitutes a two-thirds majority). Additionally, a province can explicitly choose to dissent to an amendment that "derogates from the legislative powers, the proprietary rights or any other rights or privileges of the legislature or government of a province", in which case it does not apply in that province even if passed. Though not constitutionally mandated, a referendum is also considered to be necessary by some, especially following the precedent established by the
Charlottetown Accord
The Charlottetown Accord (french: Accord de Charlottetown) was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendum on October ...
in 1992.
However, there are some parts of the constitution that can be modified only by a vote of all the provinces plus the
Parliament of Canada; these include changes to the composition of the
Supreme Court of Canada, changing the process for amending the constitution itself, or any act affecting the
Canadian monarch
The monarchy of Canada is Canada's form of government embodied by the Canadian sovereign and head of state. It is at the core of Canada's constitutional Canadian federalism, federal structure and Westminster system, Westminster-style Parliamentar ...
or
Governor General
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy ...
.
European Union
In the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
, double majority voting replaced artificial voting weights for votes requiring a
qualified majority
A supermajority, supra-majority, qualified majority, or special majority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of more than one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority ru ...
in the
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union, often referred to in the treaties and other official documents simply as the Council, and informally known as the Council of Ministers, is the third of the seven Institutions of the European Union (EU) as ...
following implementation of the
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member s ...
. A qualified majority requires 55% of voting
EU member states, representing at least 65% of the population of voting members for a European Commission proposal to be approved. This increases to 72% of voting members states, representing at least 65% of the EU population of voting members should the proposal originate from a member state. Proposals can be blocked should a qualified majority of least four Council members representing more than 35% of the EU population be formed.
Finland
Changing the
constitution of Finland
The Constitution of Finland ( fi, Suomen perustuslaki or sv, Finlands grundlag) is the supreme source of national law of Finland. It defines the basis, structures and organisation of government, the relationship between the different constitutio ...
requires that a simple majority of the sitting
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
vote in favor of the amendment. The amendment is postponed until the next general election. The next parliament may finally vote to ratify the amendment but by a two thirds of the MPs. Thus, a double majority of two different parliaments is usually required to pass constitutional amendments. An expedited process may however be entered if five sixths of the sitting parliament vote to declare an amendment urgent. Then, a two-thirds majority of the current parliament may ratify an amendment using the expedited process.
Montenegro
When
Montenegro
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voted for independence from
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
, the EU insisted on a supermajority of 55% for it to recognise the result; this supermajority was akin to a double majority, and would avoid the endless debate that could have resulted if the result had a smaller majority.
Northern Ireland
Under the terms of the
Belfast Agreement
The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), or Belfast Agreement ( ga, Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta or ; Ulster-Scots: or ), is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April 1998 that ended most of the violence of The Troubles, a political conflict in No ...
, if 30 members or more request it, a measure may be put to a "
cross-community vote
A cross-community vote or cross-community support is a form of voting used in the Northern Ireland Assembly according to the provisions of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. It requires the support of both main communities in Northern Ireland, in o ...
" which requires a majority from both the Nationalist and Unionist camps.
Romania
In
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
, a national referendum is considered valid only if at least 50% plus one of the registered voters cast their ballot. For a valid referendum, the outcome is determined by a simple majority of valid votes cast. The whole process thus involves a double majority in form of a
quorum.
A controversial amendment to the referendum law arose during the
2012 political crisis and allowed for an exception to be made in case of a referendum regarding the impeachment of the
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
. The original law, which required a double majority for impeachment, was modified by governmental emergency decree to circumvent the
quorum requirement. This would have resulted in a successful impeachment of the President in the following
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
. The referendum was, however, subsequently invalidated by the
Constitutional Court
A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...
, the body responsible for overseeing the whole process, putting an end to the crisis.
Sudan
The
independence referendum
An independence referendum is a type of referendum in which the residents of a territory decide whether the territory should become an independent sovereign state. An independence referendum that results in a vote for independence does not alwa ...
for
South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...
required 51% of the vote and 60% turnout.
Switzerland
In
Switzerland, the passing of a constitutional amendment by
popular vote
Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group.
Popular may also refer to:
In sociology
* Popular culture
* Popular fiction
* Popular music
* Popular science
* Populace, the total ...
requires a double majority; not only must a majority of people vote for the amendment but a majority of
cantons must also give their consent. This is to prevent a larger canton from foisting amendments onto the smaller ones and vice versa.
United States
Double majority is used in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
for some
initiative
In political science, an initiative (also known as a popular initiative or citizens' initiative) is a means by which a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters can force a government to choose either to enact a law or hold a ...
or
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
votes on issues such as a
tax levy
A tax levy under United States federal law is an administrative action by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under statutory authority, generally without going to court, to seize property to satisfy a tax liability. The levy "includes the power ...
or
bond
Bond or bonds may refer to:
Common meanings
* Bond (finance), a type of debt security
* Bail bond, a commercial third-party guarantor of surety bonds in the United States
* Chemical bond, the attraction of atoms, ions or molecules to form chemica ...
. Essentially, a double majority standard applies a two-part test to a
vote
Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an Constituency, electorate, can engage for the purpose of making a collective decision making, decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election camp ...
outcome before a measure is passed:
* Did a
majority of registered voters turn out for the election?
* Did votes in favor outnumber votes against, by the required margin?
If the answer to either of these questions is No, the measure fails.
This mechanism is used to prevent a small group from passing spending measures that affect the entire population in order to support their pet causes, especially at an election expected to have low
voter turnout
In political science, voter turnout is the participation rate (often defined as those who cast a ballot) of a given election. This can be the percentage of registered voters, eligible voters, or all voting-age people. According to Stanford Univ ...
. Double majorities are also frequently used in municipal
annexations, wherein majorities of both the residents in the annexing territory and the territory to be annexed must support the annexation. A similar rule exists for adopting
metropolitan government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-l ...
in
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, where the referendum must pass both inside and outside the principal city.
Notes
References
* Butterworths ''Concise Australian Legal Dictionary'', 2nd edition (2002).
Europa Glossary
{{Majorities
Voting theory
Legal terminology
European Union legislative procedure
Australian constitutional law
Majority