How Many Have to Vote, and How Many Have to Agree

Your Group's usual rule

Three settings decide whether a Decision passes:

Quorum

The minimum turnout for the result to count, as a percentage of the Group's active members. The default is 51%, so more than half the Group has to vote. Learn more(Investopedia)

Pass share

The share of For votes needed to pass, counted against For plus Against. Abstain counts toward turnout but not toward this share. The default is 51%, so an exact tie does not pass. A Group can ask for more: two-thirds (67%), three-quarters (75%), or unanimous (100%).

Voting period

How many days a Decision stays open for voting.

An administrator can change these on your Group's Rules page. If your Group has asked for rule changes to be signed off, the change waits for that sign-off before it takes effect. A Group that would rather decide this together can also put it to the whole membership as a “How we vote” Rule-change Decision. See Ways Your Group Can Vote.

Departing from the rule for one Decision

Any Decision can set its own voting period, turnout, and pass share in an “Advanced” panel at compose time. Leave a field blank and it uses your Group's usual rule.

Pass requirements

A Decision can carry extra bars beyond quorum and pass share: up to six of them, and only on a simple for/against/ abstain ballot. Each one reads as a single sentence, for example: “Against must be at most 0% of votes cast.” Every requirement on a Decision must be met; they layer on top of quorum and pass share rather than replacing either.

Hiding results until voting closes

A Decision can be set so members can still vote, but nobody sees the running tally until it closes. That way early votes can't sway people who haven't voted yet.

Related guides

• Ways Your Group Can Vote: the named processes you choose from.
• What Happens After a Decision Passes: from passed to carried out.