Majority Rule and Minority Rights

Democracy relies on majority decisions, but thinkers have long worried about a 'tyranny of the majority'. James Madison feared that a majority faction could oppress others, and Alexis de Tocqueville and John Stuart Mill warned that majority opinion could crush dissent even without laws. Democracies respond in several ways: entrenched rights that majorities cannot easily remove, independent courts, federalism that gives minorities regional power, supermajority rules for major changes, and power-sharing.

Arend Lijphart contrasted 'majoritarian' democracies such as the UK, where a winning party governs alone, with 'consensus' democracies such as Switzerland and Belgium, where power is shared through coalitions, proportional representation and federalism. Majoritarian systems offer clear accountability; consensus systems offer broader inclusion. Deciding how far a majority should be constrained is one of the central design choices in any democracy.