Simone Lawson
Popular sovereignty is a governing principle that asserts that political power resides with the people of a community or state, rather than with any particular person, group, or ancestral line. This concept is deeply rooted in the US Constitution, with its preamble beginning with the words We the people of the United States... do ordain and establish this Constitution. The Tenth Amendment further reinforces popular sovereignty by protecting the rights of the people and ensuring that they have the power to choose their government. The founding fathers of the United States were influenced by ancient democratic models and biblical ideals, shaping their belief in popular sovereignty as the foundation of the nation's civil government and laws. This principle has been a driving force in shaping American democracy and continues to be a subject of legal and political debate.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Popular sovereignty is a governing principle that asserts political power resides with the whole people of a community or state, not with any particular person, group, or ancestral line. | The people have the authority to choose how and who to govern for themselves, and their government and governors derive legitimate authority by the people's consent. |
| The Tenth Amendment protects popular sovereignty by serving as a source for robust judicial review of federal and state laws that infringe on it. | The Tenth Amendment's final words "reserve powers to 'the people'", defining and protecting them as a sovereign body capable of wielding specific powers. |
| The concept of popular sovereignty was influenced by ancient models of democracy in Greece and Rome, as well as the Bible and a Bible-oriented worldview. | Locke and Sidney's grounding of popular sovereignty in the Bible reveals a strong connection between the Bible and American political thought. |
| The Founders of the United States expressed and applied the principle of popular sovereignty in key founding documents such as the Declaration and Constitution. | The Constitution's Preamble begins with "We the people of the United States...", affirming popular sovereignty through consent as the basis and legitimacy of the American government. |
| Twenty-five states have some form of direct democracy in their state constitutions, allowing citizens to pass statutes or constitutional amendments by popular vote and create referenda processes. | Citizens can initiate processes that prompt a power struggle with state legislatures over policy-setting. |
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What You'll Learn
Popular sovereignty and the Tenth Amendment
Popular sovereignty is the idea that political power resides with the whole people of a community or state, not with any particular person, group, or ancestral line. The Founders expressed and applied the philosophical principle of popular sovereignty in the key founding documents of the United States—the Declaration and Constitution. The U.S. Constitution's Preamble begins with "We the people of the United States…do ordain and establish this Constitution."
The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, a part of the Bill of Rights, was ratified on December 15, 1791. It prescribes that the federal government has only those powers delegated to it by the Constitution, and that all other powers not forbidden to the states by the Constitution are reserved for each state or the people. The Tenth Amendment is similar to Article II of the Articles of Confederation, which states that each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right not expressly delegated to the United States in Congress assembled.
The Tenth Amendment ought to protect popular sovereignty, as it protects state sovereignty, by serving as a source for robust judicial review of federal and state laws that infringe on popular sovereignty. The amendment's final four words, which reserve powers to "the people," have been overlooked by textualists, creating an inconsistency that risks government-driven erosion of democracy in America.
The Supreme Court has relied on the Tenth Amendment in several cases to analyze congressional enactments that allegedly intrude upon state sovereignty. For example, in National League of Cities v. Usery, the Court revived the Tenth Amendment as an independent constitutional constraint, finding that there are attributes of sovereignty attaching to every state government that may not be impaired by Congress. In South Carolina v. Baker (1988), the Court said in dicta that an exception to Garcia would be when a state lacked "any right to participate" in the federal political process or was left "politically isolated and powerless" by a federal law.
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Popular sovereignty and voting rights
Popular sovereignty is a governing principle that asserts that political power resides with the people of a community or state, rather than with any particular person, group, or ancestral line. This concept is deeply rooted in the history of the United States, with the Founders expressing and applying it in key founding documents such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
The idea of popular sovereignty was influenced by ancient models of democracy in Greece and Rome, as well as by the Bible and a Bible-oriented worldview. In the Bible, the Creator God gives all mankind equal dominion over the earth, implying that earthly political power belongs to the people. This notion is reflected in the Declaration of Independence, which recognises the equality of all men and the establishment of a just government by the people's consent.
The Constitution's Preamble, which begins with "We the people of the United States...", further emphasises the principle of popular sovereignty. Alexander Hamilton, in his Federalist Paper 22, affirmed that the legitimacy of the American government rests on the consent of the people. This sentiment underscores the belief that the people possess the inherent authority to choose their government and shape their nation's laws.
In practice, popular sovereignty has been applied through mechanisms such as ballot initiatives and referenda, which empower citizens to directly influence policy and legislation. Twenty-five states in the US have incorporated some form of direct democracy into their state constitutions, allowing citizens to pass statutes or constitutional amendments by popular vote. These processes ensure that the power to make and change laws ultimately resides with the people.
Despite the importance of popular sovereignty in the founding principles of the United States, there have been challenges and debates surrounding its implementation. For example, the Utah court's decision, which recognised the citizens' right to enact government reforms through initiatives, sparked a discussion about the distribution of power between citizens and their elected representatives. Additionally, the Tenth Amendment, which protects state sovereignty, has been criticised for overlooking the people's role in popular sovereignty and their power to choose their government. Recognising this aspect of the Tenth Amendment could lead to a shift in the legal doctrine surrounding voting rights, emphasising free, fair, and accessible elections as a manifestation of popular sovereignty.
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Popular sovereignty in the US Declaration of Independence
The US Declaration of Independence of 1776 recognises a Creator God, the equality of all men, and a just government instituted by the people's consent. It asserts the philosophical basis for the founding of a new nation. The Declaration states:
> We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.
The Declaration of Independence affirmed the republican principle of popular government. The people were the source of all sovereignty, or authority, in the representative government. They gave their consent to their elected representatives to govern them.
The Founders strongly adhered to popular sovereignty and shaped their new nation and its civil government and laws according to this principle. The United States of America was formed based on the principle of popular sovereignty—the idea that political power resides with the whole people of a civil state, not with a particular person or group by succession. This idea is expressed and applied in the US Declaration and Constitution through the consent of the governed—the people's authority and right to choose and define the powers of their government and governors.
Popular sovereignty was infrequently used by early Americans, but they believed in the concept of rule by the people, and that state officers and employees would be public servants. The term "popular sovereignty" was first used in connection with slavery in the territories by presidential candidate and Michigan senator Lewis Cass in his 1847 Nicholson Letter.
The Founders expressed and applied the philosophical principle of popular sovereignty in the key founding documents of the United States—the Declaration and Constitution. The language of the Declaration resembles Locke’s, and founding-era Americans asserted this principle to justify the American Revolution and their authority and right to form an independent, self-governing nation.
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Popular sovereignty in state constitutions
Popular sovereignty is the philosophical principle that political power resides with the people of a community or state, rather than with any particular person, group, or ancestral line. The US Declaration of Independence of 1776, for example, recognises the equality of all men and a just government instituted by the people's consent.
The US Constitution's Preamble begins with "We the people of the United States...do ordain and establish this Constitution", affirming popular sovereignty through consent as the basis and legitimacy of the American government.
Popular sovereignty is also reflected in the state constitutions of 25 states, which have some form of direct democracy built into them. For instance, ballot initiative processes allow citizens to pass statutes or constitutional amendments by popular vote, and referenda processes create a pathway for citizens to reject recently passed legislation.
In Utah, the state constitution's direct democracy provisions reflect the wins of Progressive Era reformers in the early 20th century, giving citizens "direct policymaking authority over their legislators on matters of governmental reform". The Utah court considered various provisions of the state constitution and concluded that citizens have a fundamental right to enact government reforms through an initiative process.
The Tenth Amendment is meant to protect popular sovereignty, serving as a source for judicial review of federal and state laws that infringe on it. However, the popular sovereignty provision of the Tenth Amendment has been overlooked, and the current doctrine insufficiently protects the people's power to choose their government. Recognising this portion of the Tenth Amendment could alter the legal doctrine surrounding voting rights, treating elections as a matter of competing sovereign powers rather than individual voting rights.
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The philosophical basis of popular sovereignty
Popular sovereignty is a philosophical principle that asserts that political power resides with the whole people of a community or state, rather than with any particular person, group, or ancestral line. This idea of popular rule has ancient roots in the democratic models of Greece and Rome, as well as in the Bible, which portrays a Creator God who bestows upon all mankind, as equal and free, dominion over the earth and, by extension, earthly political power.
In the context of the United States Constitution, the philosophical basis of popular sovereignty is evident in the Declaration of Independence, which recognises the equality of all men and the establishment of a just government by the people's consent. The Constitution's Preamble, beginning with "We the people of the United States...", further underscores this principle of popular sovereignty through consent. Alexander Hamilton, in his Federalist Paper 22, affirmed this concept as the foundation and legitimacy of the American government, emphasising that national power should originate from the people.
The Tenth Amendment of the Constitution is also relevant to popular sovereignty. It protects the power of the people to choose their government and serves as a limit on federal powers, safeguarding against tyranny. However, there has been criticism that the judicial interpretation of the Tenth Amendment has overlooked the rights of "the people", treating voting rights as individual rights rather than as a matter of competing sovereign powers.
The concept of popular sovereignty has been a subject of debate and has faced challenges in its application. For example, in the historical context of the Utah and New Mexico territories in 1850, the application of popular sovereignty led to a violent struggle between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions, illustrating the difficulty of reaching a consensus on certain issues.
Despite these complexities, the philosophical basis of popular sovereignty remains a fundamental principle in the American political system, shaping the nation's civil government and laws. It reflects the belief that the people possess the rightful authority to choose how and by whom they are governed, with their consent serving as the source of legitimate authority for their government and governors.
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Frequently asked questions
Popular sovereignty is the idea that political power resides with the people of a community or state, rather than with any particular person, group, or ancestral line.
The US Constitution's Preamble begins with "We the people of the United States...do ordain and establish this Constitution", affirming popular sovereignty through consent as the basis and legitimacy of the American government.
Twenty-five states have some form of direct democracy in their state constitutions, such as ballot initiatives and referenda processes that allow citizens to pass laws or reject legislation by popular vote.
The concept of popular sovereignty was first applied in the organizing of the Utah and New Mexico territories in 1850. It was also a crucial factor in the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which repealed the prohibition of slavery north of latitude 36°30’.
