In a perfect democracy, at least 50% of people would support every decision.

The U.S. falls short of this goal.

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Spoken For.
Senate vote: S. 1955 // May 11, 2006Needed 60 votes to end debate

Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Committee Amendment (Subst.) As Modified, to S.1955

Who won, and how much of the country was behind them

Won the vote · Nay

43 votes, representing 110,923,329 people49.3%of U.S. adults

Lost the vote · Yea

55 votes, representing 108,712,646 people48.3%of U.S. adults

The dotted gap is 2.5% of U.S. adults whose member did not vote, voted “present,” or whose seat was vacant.

Share of U.S. adults represented, the Senate. The winning side fell 0.7 points short of a majority of the country.
SideOutcomeVotesShare of U.S. adults
NayWon4349.3%
YeaLost5548.3%
Not represented on this questionNo position taken02.5%

Senate This vote needed 60 yes votes to pass, more than the usual majority. It's called cloture, and it means a side with a majority of votes can still lose.