Tyranny of the majority

The tyranny of the majority is the concern that in a democracy, the largest group can oppress smaller groups through the ordinary exercise of voting power. The idea is associated with the founders, especially James Madison, and with Alexis de Tocqueville, who used the phrase in Democracy in America (1835), and with John Stuart Mill.

Madison's answer in Federalist No. 10 and 51 was a large republic with many competing interests, so that no single faction could easily form a stable majority, along with representation and separation of powers. The Bill of Rights, judicial review and the Equal Protection Clause work to protect individuals and minority groups from legislative majorities.

The idea is invoked across the spectrum. Conservatives and libertarians cite it to defend property rights, religious liberty and limits on taxation, and to argue for a constitutional republic over direct democracy. Civil rights advocates cite it in defense of racial and other minorities. Critics warn that the phrase can also be used to resist majority rule on legitimate decisions, and that courts and elites can also oppress, a worry about rule by unelected judges. Compare popular-sovereignty.