Political equality

Political equality is the principle that people have equal standing and influence in political life, including equal rights to participate in collective decisions.

Democracy: A system of government in which political authority is grounded in the people. Political equality is a central standard for judging whether democratic rule gives people meaningful standing.
One person, one vote: The electoral principle that each person's vote should carry equal weight. It expresses political equality as a constraint on how votes are counted and districts drawn.
Athenian democracy: The direct democratic system of classical Athens, in which eligible male citizens participated in public decisions. Its institutions offer an influential but sharply restricted early model of political participation.
Political inequality: Unequal distribution of political rights, access, or influence among people or groups. It names the condition political equality seeks to prevent or remedy.
Political legitimacy: The recognized rightfulness of a government, institution, or exercise of political power. Equal standing supports the claim that collective decisions can bind those governed by them.
Citizenship: Membership in a political community, carrying rights and responsibilities. Citizenship defines who is formally included in political rights and institutions.
Proportional representation: An electoral system that allocates seats in proportion to parties' shares of the vote. It can make legislative representation more closely reflect the range of political preferences.
Magna Carta: A 1215 charter that limited royal authority and affirmed certain legal protections for English subjects. Its legacy helped shape later arguments that political authority must be constrained by law.
Economic equality: The principle or condition of reducing disparities in income, wealth, or material resources. Political equality can exist formally while economic disparities distort practical influence.
Representative democracy: A system in which elected representatives make political decisions on behalf of citizens. Its legitimacy depends partly on whether people have equal chances to choose and hold representatives accountable.

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