major party

noun

: a political party having electoral strength sufficient to permit it to win control of a government usually with comparative regularity and when defeated to constitute the principal opposition to the party in power

Examples of major party in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The effect was clear in Nevada’s 2024 Senate race, which Democrats narrowly won as nearly 5 percent of voters picked a candidate outside the two major parties. — semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2026

Hosey, who is running without a party affiliation, says voters deserve an alternative to the two major parties. — Erika Gonzalez, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026

Even if the wars do continue, the identities of both major parties are in flux—existing coalitions are shaky, and the tremors could lead to unexpectedly competitive races in seats drawn around outdated assumptions. — Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2026

This simultaneous rise of the Greens and Reform could fracture Britain’s political landscape, in which the first-past-the-post electoral system typically favors two or three major parties. — Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for major party

• counterparty
• multiparty
• arty
• carty
• hearty
• parti
• astarte
• mccarty
• nonparty