nonmajority

Nonmajority is a term used to describe the absence of a single group that holds a majority in a defined context. In political, demographic, and statistical usage, it indicates that no one category surpasses the fifty-percent threshold, and thus leadership, representation, or influence cannot be claimed by a single group alone. The concept is closely related to, but distinct from, minority status and plurality. A minority is a group that is outnumbered by others in size or influence, whereas nonmajority emphasizes the lack of any group achieving majority status, even if a group remains the largest share.

In demographic analysis, nonmajority situations occur when the population is composed of several groups with no dominant majority, such as a region where Group A holds 40%, Group B 32%, and Group C 28%. In governance, no party or coalition reaching a majority often requires coalitions, pacts, or consensus processes to enact policy. The term is less common in formal statistics or constitutional language; more typical terminology is minority, plurality, or no clear majority.

Etymology: from non- + majority, indicating the opposite of a majority. See also: majority, minority, plurality, coalition government, no-clear-majority.