A major party is a political party that holds substantial influence in a country's politics, standing in contrast to a

minor party A minor party is a political party that plays a smaller (in some cases much smaller, even insignificant in comparison) role than a major party in a country's politics and elections. The difference between minor and major parties can be so great t ...

. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Major parties hold a significant percentage of the vote in elections and claim higher membership than minor parties. Typically, major parties have the most donors, best-organized support networks and excellent funding for elections. Their candidates for political positions are closely watched since they have the highest chance of being elected to office because of the high membership, recognition and donations that these parties are able to generate. Two major parties can lead to a

two-party system A two-party system is a political party system in which two major political parties consistently dominate the political landscape. At any point in time, one of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually referr ...

. If there is only one major party, then it is a

dominant-party system A dominant-party system, or one-party dominant system, is a political occurrence in which a single political party continuously dominates election results over running opposition groups or parties. Any ruling party staying in power for more tha ...

. In a

multi-party system In political science, a multi-party system is a political system where more than two meaningfully-distinct political parties regularly run for office and win elections. Multi-party systems tend to be more common in countries using proportional ...

, a major party is one that occasionally controls the presidency or premiership and is the most influential party in a

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

. Sometimes the laws of a country (or of a state within a

federal republic A federal republic is a federation of Federated state, states with a republican form of government. At its core, the literal meaning of the word republic when used to reference a form of government means a country that is governed by elected re ...

) provide for two parties that are given special treatment, without explicitly naming those parties. For example, the FAQ posted on the website of the

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission says that "Of the 13 commissioners, four affiliate with the Democratic Party, four affiliate with the Republican Party, and five do not affiliate with either major political party.", but the relevant paragraph of the state constitution says that applicants to be commissioners had to attest "either that they affiliate with one of the two political parties with the largest representation in the legislature (hereinafter, 'major parties'), and if so, identify the party with which they affiliate, or that they do not affiliate with either of the major parties."

References

{{Authority control Political parties Types of political parties

See also

References