Dimensions of majority rule

Abstract

The principle of majority rule is a concept that is often employed both in normative democratic theory and in practical politics. But not only that there are relatively few academic studies focusing exclusively on this concept, it is also possible to claim that the existing discussions usually overlook different dimensions of majority rule. This article aims to outline some suggestions for what these dimensions might be, such as: the nature of the participants, the subject matter of the decision and the context in which the decision is made. One underlying assumption in this study is that the normative prospects of the majority rule principle depend on the evaluation of these different dimensions.