maioria

Maoria is the term used in Portuguese to denote the greater part of a group, typically defined as more than half of the votes or participants. In political and social contexts, it is closely associated with the principle of majority rule, where the option with the most support prevails in decisions, elections, or governance.

Etymology: Maoria comes from Latin maioritas, through Old Portuguese. It has cognates in other Romance languages, such as mayoría in Spanish, maggioranza in Italian, and majorité in French.

In law and governance, majorities establish legitimacy for decisions. Simple majority (maioria simples) means the most-voted option wins, usually requiring more than half of votes cast. Absolute majority (maioria absoluta) requires more than half of all eligible voters, regardless of turnout. Qualified majority (maioria qualificada) requires a supermajority, such as two-thirds or three-fifths, and is used for constitutional amendments, treaties, or other significant acts. Thresholds vary by country and institution, reflecting different constitutional or procedural rules.

In broader use, the term also describes the prevailing opinion within a population or the majority of observations in a data set. Related concepts include minority (minoria) and plurality (pluralidade), which describe different distributions of support or votes.

See also: minority, plurality, supermajority, referendum, constitutional amendment.