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All, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression.
~~ Thomas Jefferson ~~ (1743–1826)

Some people wrongly assume that, in a democracy, the party that wins the majority and forms the government can change or repeal old laws and make any new laws that it wishes to carry out its agenda. That is not exactly true. I think that is precisely what Thomas Jefferson is alluding to in this quote. Of course, when a political party wins majority and forms a government in a democracy, it has the right to pass new laws and change older laws to carry out its political agenda so long as its actions are reasonable and do not oppress the minority.

In true democracies, this is a very important and sacred principle. It is protected by the presence of a Constitution and an independent Judiciary. The Constitution guarantees certain rights to individuals and if the government encroaches upon such rights, the individuals can challenge the government in the court and the Court may declare the law unconstitutional.

It is also possible that a government with huge majority may try to amend the Constitution. Again, such an amendment can be challenged in the Court and the Court may declare the amendment invalid or unlawful if, in the opinion of the Court, such an amendment will lead to oppression of the minority. Independent judiciary in all true democracies is, therefore, extremely important in insuring that no majority party can become autocratic.

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