Jonah Patel
Popular sovereignty is the principle that a state's leaders and government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political legitimacy. Citizens may unite and delegate a portion of their sovereign powers and duties to state officers, who must agree to serve according to the will of the people. The concept of popular sovereignty has been used in constitutional law, with 25 states in the US having some form of direct democracy in their constitutions. The US Constitution, for example, includes popular sovereignty in its preamble, which begins with We the people of the United States... and in Article V, which provides the means to amend the Constitution through elected representatives.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| The source of political legitimacy | The people |
| The source of law | The people |
| The source of authority in government | The people |
| The creators and sustainers of the government | The people |
| The right to elect virtuous leaders | The people |
| The right to influence public policy decisions | The people |
| The right to pass statutes or constitutional amendments by popular vote | The people |
| The right to reject recently passed legislation | The people |
| The right to enact government reforms through an initiative process | The people |
| The right to direct policymaking authority over legislators on matters of governmental reform | The people |
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What You'll Learn
Popular sovereignty and the consent of the governed
Popular sovereignty is the principle that the leaders of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political legitimacy. Citizens may unite and offer to delegate a portion of their sovereign powers and duties to those who wish to serve as officers of the state, on the condition that the officers agree to serve according to the will of the people.
In the United States, the term "popular sovereignty" has been used in constitutional law. It was also used during the 19th century in reference to a proposed solution to the debate over the expansion of slavery in the United States. The proposal would have given the power to determine the legality of slavery to the inhabitants of the territory seeking statehood, rather than to Congress.
The concept of popular sovereignty was also important to the American colonists, who believed that they were deprived of their opportunity to consent to be governed by Parliament under King George III. As a result, they argued that the British could not force their laws upon the colonies. This belief was later upheld in the American Constitution, with its famous preamble: "We the people of the United States... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America".
Popular sovereignty is also reflected in the constitutions of other democratic nation-states. For example, Article 2 of the 1993 constitution of the Czech Republic states, "All state power derives from the people... The state power serves all citizens and can be exercised only in cases within the scope stipulated by law, and by means specified by law."
However, the idea of popular sovereignty has been criticised for not adequately addressing the sovereignty of Indigenous peoples in multi-people states. In these cases, the inclusion of Indigenous peoples in democratic institutions may not be sufficient for the realisation of their popular sovereignty. Instead, their constituent power must be recognised, allowing them to create and negotiate the constitutional order.
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Popular sovereignty in multi-people states
Popular sovereignty is the principle that the leaders of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political legitimacy. Citizens may unite and offer to delegate a portion of their sovereign powers and duties to those who wish to serve as officers of the state, contingent on the officers agreeing to serve according to the will of the people.
In multi-people states, the idea of popular sovereignty becomes more complex, especially when considering Indigenous peoples and their relationship to the majority population. The doctrine of popular sovereignty holds that the 'supreme authority of the state' belongs to the people, not to the political institutions exercising public power. This raises questions about how 'the people' should be defined in states with Indigenous populations, who are distinct from the majority population.
In some states, Indigenous peoples are recognized as citizens with legal personality and collective rights, including rights to self-government, in national constitutions, legislation, and treaties. However, their inclusion in democratic institutions may not be sufficient for the realization of their popular sovereignty. Instead, it has been argued that their constituent power must be recognized, meaning they have the power to create and negotiate the constitutional order. This necessitates a process of negotiation between Indigenous peoples and the majority population, where both parties mutually recognize each other as sovereign.
The challenge of popular sovereignty in multi-people states is, therefore, about recognizing the distinctiveness of Indigenous peoples and their status as authors of their own citizenship within a state situated on their territory. This requires a renovated approach to popular sovereignty that introduces a procedural conception of 'constituent power', which can guide relationships between states and Indigenous peoples.
Furthermore, in multi-people states, the implementation of popular sovereignty may involve direct democracy, where citizens have the power to pass statutes, amend constitutions, and influence public policy decisions. For example, in the United States, popular sovereignty was expressed in the Constitution's preamble, which states, "We the people of the United States... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." This idea of popular sovereignty has become a standard of legitimacy for governments worldwide, with many democratic constitutions today proclaiming and implementing the principle of popular sovereignty.
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Popular sovereignty in the United States Constitution
Popular sovereignty is the principle that the leaders of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political legitimacy. Citizens may unite and offer to delegate a portion of their sovereign powers and duties to those who wish to serve as officers of the state, contingent on the officers agreeing to serve according to the will of the people.
In the United States, the term "popular sovereignty" has been used in constitutional law to express this concept. It was also used during the 19th century in reference to a proposed solution to the debate over the expansion of slavery in the United States. The proposal would have given the power to determine the legality of slavery to the inhabitants of the territory seeking statehood, rather than to Congress.
The idea of popular sovereignty was asserted as a founding principle of the United States of America. The Declaration of Independence of 1776 asserts that legitimate governments are those "deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed." The US Constitution proclaims popular sovereignty in its Preamble: "We the people of the United States... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
Popular sovereignty is also reflected in various parts of the Constitution. Article V provides the means to amend the Constitution through the elected representatives of the people. Article VII required that nine states approve the proposed framework of the Constitution before it could become the supreme law of the land. Article I pertaining to the House of Representatives and the 17th Amendment concerning the election of members of Congress also require that members of Congress be elected directly by the people.
The concept of popular sovereignty has had a significant influence on the development of democracy in the United States and has become a standard of legitimacy for governments worldwide.
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Popular sovereignty and the slavery debate
Popular sovereignty is a concept that emerged as a potential solution to the crisis over slavery in the territories of the United States. It is the principle that the leaders of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political legitimacy. The term was coined by Lewis Cass of Michigan, the Democratic candidate for President in the 1848 election. Cass proposed that the people of the territories themselves should decide whether slavery would be permitted. This would remove the issue from the halls of Congress, where many southern lawmakers had begun to question the right of Congress to determine the status of slavery in any territory.
The concept of popular sovereignty was supported by Stephen A. Douglas, who became its loudest proponent. As long as the issue was discussed theoretically, he had many supporters. However, the idea proved difficult to put into practice. There were questions about how eligible voters could be identified, and whether a popular vote could be guaranteed to be free from fraud. Furthermore, if slavery were voted down, would individuals who already owned slaves be allowed to keep them?
Popular sovereignty was applied in the Utah and New Mexico territories in 1850, and in the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which repealed the prohibition of slavery north of latitude 36°30′. The violent struggle that followed for control of the Kansas Territory, known as "Bleeding Kansas", illustrated the failure of popular sovereignty as a possible ground for agreement between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions. When honest elections were held in Kansas, the residents showed that they overwhelmingly wanted it to be a free state. However, pro-slavery forces had the votes to block Kansas's admission to the Union as a free state, so nothing was done until Southern legislators were expelled from Congress in 1861, and Kansas was admitted as a free state under the Wyandotte Constitution.
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Popular sovereignty in democratic nation-states
Popular sovereignty is a central idea in democratic thinking, holding that public power is legitimate only when it is derived from the people. The doctrine of popular sovereignty asserts that the 'supreme authority of the state' belongs to the people, not to the political institutions exercising power. This means that the powers exercised by the state belong to the people subject to them, and that the people are the true bearers of sovereignty.
In democratic nation-states, the principle of popular sovereignty is often enshrined in the constitution, which may be made in the name of the people and ratified by a majority vote. For example, the US Constitution proclaims popular sovereignty in its preamble: "We the people of the United States... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America". Similarly, Article 2 of the 1993 constitution of the Czech Republic states: "All state power derives from the people... The state power serves all citizens and can be exercised only in cases within the scope stipulated by law, and by means specified by law".
The concept of popular sovereignty is also reflected in the idea that citizens may delegate a portion of their sovereign powers and duties to state officers, who serve according to the will of the people. This was expressed by Benjamin Franklin, who said: "In free governments, the rulers are the servants and the people their superiors and sovereigns". James Madison, however, cautioned against putting everything to a vote of the masses, writing in Federalist No. 10: "Democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention... ". To safeguard against the abuse of minority rights by majorities, the founders of democratic nations may limit the powers of the federal government and include a bill of rights in the constitution.
In some democratic nation-states, direct democracy is built into the constitution, allowing citizens to pass statutes or constitutional amendments by popular vote and to reject recently passed legislation. For example, in Utah, the state constitution provides citizens with "direct policymaking authority over their legislators on matters of governmental reform".
Popular sovereignty presents a unique challenge in multi-people states, particularly regarding the inclusion of Indigenous peoples in democratic institutions. While Indigenous peoples are now included within the formal jural categories of citizenship in settler states, their recognition as distinct peoples with legal personality and collective rights is still a work in progress.
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Frequently asked questions
Popular sovereignty is the principle that the leaders of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political legitimacy.
The US Constitution upholds the right of the people to consent to be governed. The Constitution also includes a Bill of Rights listing certain rights that the government should never infringe upon, even if a majority of voters want to violate them.
Indigenous peoples are recognised as distinct peoples with legal personality and collective rights in some states' constitutions and legislation. However, their popular sovereignty is often not fully realised, as they are not given a distinctive role in legitimising the constitutional order.
