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 Both major party candidates have put a heavy focus on winning over similar voters in the past few weeks. Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024 After taking both major parties to task, the VP candidate made the case on Tuesday for an Independent movement in America. Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024 Less than half the Democratic respondents supported the idea of a third major party, Gallup found. Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024 While it has never been attempted by a candidate from a major party before, Trump is allowed to run for president while under indictment — or even if he is convicted of a crime. David Nakamura, Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2024 King's tale of Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress and, eventually, a major party's first-ever Black candidate for the presidency, also scored positive reviews from critics upon its release as well, and should have long enough legs to carry through the year on good will. Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2024 The 2024 election is shaping up to be the first presidential rematch in more than 50 years, meaning voters will have unique insight into both major party candidates. Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024 At the Democratic Convention in 2016, Streep broke the dress back out to deliver her speech to mark the nomination of Hillary Clinton, the first woman ever to top a major party’s ticket. Mattie Kahn, Vogue, 6 Mar. 2024 After all, no independent candidate or third-party candidate has ever won the presidency, which has remained the province of the two major parties since the 1790s – even as those two parties have evolved, changing their names and geographical bases. Ron Elving, NPR, 30 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'major party.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of major party was in 1950

Dictionary Entries Near major party

Cite this Entry

“Major party.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/major%20party. Accessed 27 Apr. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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