Editing Majority (section)

=== Voting basis ===
The '''voting basis''' refers to the set of members considered when calculating whether a proposal has a majority,{{sfn|Robert|2011|p=402}} i.e. the [[denominator]] used in calculating the percent support for a vote. Common voting bases include:

* '''Members present and voting''':  Members who cast a vote. Often called a '''simple majority''', and excludes [[abstention]]s.<ref name=":0">"With three-cornered contests as common as they now are, we may have occasion to find a convenient single word for what we used to call an ''absolute majority''... In America the word ''majority'' itself has that meaning while a poll greater than that of any other candidate, but less than half the votes cast is called a ''plurality.'' It might be useful to borrow this distinction..." (Fowler, H.W. 1965 ''A Dictionary of Modern English Usage'')</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=In Parliament, which votes require a simple majority and which votes require an absolute majority? - Parliamentary Education Office |url=https://peo.gov.au/understand-our-parliament/your-questions-on-notice |access-date=2024-05-07 |website=peo.gov.au |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Dougherty |first1=Keith L. |last2=Edward |first2=Julian |date=January 2010 |title=The Properties of Simple Vs. Absolute Majority Rule: Cases Where Absences and Abstentions Are Important |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0951629809347557 |journal=Journal of Theoretical Politics |language=en |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=85–122 |doi=10.1177/0951629809347557 |issn=0951-6298}}</ref> 
** If 30 members were at a meeting, but only 20 votes were cast, a majority of members present and voting would be 11 votes.<ref name="rronr2011-403" />
{{anchor|Absolute majority}}
* '''Members present''': All members present at a meeting, including those who do not vote or [[Abstention|abstain]].<ref name="rronr2011-403">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Robert|2011|p=403}}</ref> Often called an '''absolute majority'''.<ref name="schermers" /><ref name=":0" /><ref>See dictionary definitions of "simple majority", "absolute majority", and "qualified majority" at [http://en.euabc.com/word/833 EUabc.com].</ref> 
** If 30 members were at a meeting, a majority of the members present would be 16. In any situation which specifies such a requirement for a vote, an abstention would have the same effect as a "no" vote.<ref name="rr-faqs" />{{rp|6}}
* '''Entire membership''': all the members of a body, including those absent and those present but not voting.<ref name=":02">{{harvp|Robert|2011|p=403}}</ref> In practical terms, it means an absence or an abstention from voting is equivalent to a "no" vote.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Frequently Asked Questions about RONR (Question 6) |url=http://www.robertsrules.com/faq.html#6 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181224205021/http://www.robertsrules.com/faq.html#6 |archive-date=December 24, 2018 |access-date=December 30, 2015 |website=The Official Robert's Rules of Order Web Site |publisher=The Robert's Rules Association}}</ref> It may be contrasted with a majority vote which only requires more than half of those actually voting to approve a proposition for it to be enacted
** By way of illustration, in February 2007 the Italian Government fell after it lost a vote in the [[Italian Senate]] by 158 votes to 136 (with 24 abstentions). The government needed an absolute majority in the 318-member house but fell two votes short of the required 160 when two of its own supporters abstained.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hooper |first=John |date=February 22, 2007 |title=Prodi stands down after surprise defeat in senate over US alliance |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/feb/22/italy.topstories3 |access-date=June 22, 2011 |newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref>
** {{anchor|Kanzlermehrheit}} Within [[German politics]], the '''Kanzlermehrheit''' (Chancellor majority) to elect the [[Chancellor of Germany|Chancellery of Germany]] is specified as requiring a majority of elected members of the [[Bundestag]], rather than a majority of those present.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bildung |first=Bundeszentrale für politische |title=Kanzlermehrheit |url=https://www.bpb.de/kurz-knapp/lexika/lexikon-in-einfacher-sprache/249949/kanzlermehrheit/ |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=bpb.de |language=de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Deutscher Bundestag - Kanzlermehrheit |url=https://www.bundestag.de/services/glossar/glossar/K/kanzlermehrheit-869710 |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=Deutscher Bundestag |language=de}}</ref> 
* '''Fixed membership''': the official, theoretical size of the full deliberative assembly.<ref name=":02" /> It is used only when a specific number of seats or memberships is established in the rules governing the organization. A majority of the fixed membership would be different from a majority of the entire membership if there are vacancies.<ref name=":02" />
** For example, say a [[Board of directors|board]] has 13 seats. If the board has the maximum number of members, or 13 members, a majority of the entire membership and a majority of the fixed membership would be seven members. However, if there are two vacancies (so that there are only eleven members on the board), then a majority of the entire membership would be six members (more than half of eleven), but a majority of the fixed membership would still be seven members.<ref name=":02" />