Unanimity versus majority: proposing under incomplete information

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

We examine the trade-offs between unanimity and majority voting under incomplete information. While conventional wisdom suggests that unanimity leads to higher reform rejection rates and higher total transfers compared to the majority rule, we show that this does not always hold when the proposer lacks perfect knowledge of responders’ acceptance costs. Using a simple theoretical model, we identify conditions under which uncertainty leads the proposer to adopt different bargaining behaviors, sometimes resulting in a higher probability of reform approval under unanimity rule, and sometimes yielding higher total transfers under majority rule. Our findings inform the current EU debate on replacing unanimity with majority voting and provide nuanced insights into the arguments advanced by each side.

Details

Original languageEnglish
JournalPublic Choice
Volume2026
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 10 Mar 2026
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

ORCID /0000-0002-5071-7849/work/210355044
Scopus 105033401483

Keywords

Keywords

  • Unanimity, Voting, Bargaining, Incomplete information, Majority