If a winner emerges in an election as a result of his/her votes being more than the combined votes of the…

Analyze the question: The winner's votes are more than the combined votes of all the other candidates. That means the winner has over 50% of the valid votes cast.

Explain the concept:

• Absolute majority: the winner must get more than 50% of the votes, which is more than all the other candidates put together.
• Plurality (simple majority): the winner only needs the most votes, even if that is below 50%. For example, 40% beats 30%, 20% and 10%, but 40% is less than the combined 60% of the others.
• Second ballot: a run-off is held if no candidate gets an absolute majority in the first round. It is a method for reaching an absolute majority, not the description of the outcome itself.
• Alternative vote: voters rank candidates, and lower-ranked candidates are eliminated and their votes transferred until someone has a majority.

Solution: Suppose a candidate gets 55 votes out of 100. The others share 45 votes in total, so 55 > 45. The winner beat the combined opposition, which is exactly an absolute majority.

Under plurality, the winner could have 35 votes against 30, 20 and 15. That is not more than the combined 65 votes of the others, so the description in the question does not fit.

Answer: A. Absolute majority

Tip: Link the key phrases to the systems:

• "More than all others combined" or "over 50%" means absolute majority.
• "Highest number of votes" or "most votes" means plurality.