In America, the power of the majority overwhelms minority thoughts. According to Tocqueville, the majority has the greatest power in swaying the legislative branch. Tocqueville points out that this is because voters who elect delegates “point out a certain line of conduct to him and impose upon him certain positive obligations that he is pledged to fulfill.” It is under this type of system that quantity is preferred over quality -- there is more collective “intelligence and wisdom” in a group of men rather than an individual, and therefore the group of men are given what they desire and choose is correct. To that, Tocqueville responds “a majority taken collectively is only an individual, whose opinions, and frequently whose interests, are opposed to those of another individual, who is styled a minority.”
When this occurs, the voice of the minority is quieted down and the minority slowly but surely gives in to the power of the majority and their desired outcomes. The issue with contesting the rights of the majority is that the minority too hopes to one day bring others to their side, become the majority, and take advantage of the rights of the majority. In Federalist Paper #51, Madison was similarly concerned with the dangers that come about from a powerful majority. He agreed that the majority rule and free elections were constructed to protect citizens from tyranny of a minority, but he was more concerned with the tyranny of the majority. Like Tocqueville, Madison believed that majorities often threaten the rights of minorities.
Tocqueville also highlights that “the authority exercised by the legislature is supreme,” but the structure of the legislative branch is unstable since every year there are new representatives. American laws are short-lived and depend upon what the American people are passionate about at the time. He compares this to the system in the free states of European, which allows for concerns to be continuously addressed.
Tocqueville continues by claiming that “the jury is the majority invested with the right of hearing judicial cases; and in certain state even the judges are elected by the majority.” Therefore, juries are not a strong guarantee against the tyranny of the majority. However, Tocqueville states that lawyers from the only enlightened class whom citizens do not mistrust and they exercise a powerful influence upon the formation of the law and upon its execution.” Lawyers have the ability to temper the negative effects of democracy.
I thought it was interesting the way Tocqueville described the majority and it's threat to the minority. I think he described the majority in a good amount of detail, but he left me asking questions about the minority in general. I wonder if he would consider democrats in congress the minority since they have trouble passing laws when republicans are the majority. Or does he mean even smaller minorities like third parties. I know that third parties do not often get their voices heard, but would tocqueville consider the outcome of the general election a victory for third parties? If Gary Johnson and Jill Stein were able to take away votes from Hillary Clinton and help Donald Trump secure a win, was the third party able to have a voice even in a democratic two party system?
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