Majority Vs. Minority

Name

Institution

Year

The term majority rule is rooted in the democratic system of government and this has its merits and demerits. The notion of the majority as the right group has for centuries been upheld with the system showing its weaknesses in some cases. The majority over the minority is not always the right approach to equity in ruling as it makes the minority feel left out. For example, in a case where the opinions of the minority are not considered, the lesser group always feels left out and thus not part of the progress being made. For a balanced outlook and stability, it is always good to take in the opinions of all the people. John Stuart’s observation on the majority over minority as a bad system holds weight because it is not guaranteed that the majority will always be right. To ensure that all people feel included in the affairs of a country, the system needs to be established on an all-inclusive decision-making approach.

The political alignments of a country remain one of the obstacles to achieving a collective and all-inclusive approach to governance and decision making. One of the main issues with the majority over the minority system is that there is likelihood of monopoly that hinders effective decision making (Lee, 2015). For example, the majority will always feel powerful and thus the decision they make may be wrong and meant to undermine or counter the minority. This system that is more enshrined within the democratic governments has been questioned over its fairness and inclusivity because it gives no room for the minority (Scharpf, 2017). Sometimes the minority turns to be the right side but their decisions or opinions hardly reach the table and thus the wrong side ends up leading that is the cause of divisions and little progress. Everyone should feel entitled to give their opinion irrespective of their side so that mature, powerful, and non-partisan ideas can be raised for the good of all people.

References

Lee, F. E. (2015). How party polarization affects governance. Annual review of political science, 18, 261-282.

Scharpf, F. W. (2017). De‐constitutionalisation and majority rule: A democratic vision for Europe. European Law Journal, 23(5), 315-334.