The Politics of Legitimation in the European Union: Legitimacy Recovered?

This book examines and investigates the legitimacy of the European Union by acknowledging the importance of variation across actors, institutions, audiences, and context.

Case studies reveal how different actors have contributed to the politics of (re)legitimating the European Union in response to multiple recent problems in European integration. The case studies look specifically at stakeholder interests, social groups, officials, judges, the media and other actors external to the Union. With this, the book develops a better understanding of how the politics of legitimating the Union are actor-dependent, context-dependent and problem-dependent.

This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of European integration, as well as those interested in legitimacy and democracy beyond the state from a point of view of political science, political sociology and the social sciences more broadly.

Christopher Lord is Professor at ARENA Centre for European Studies, University of Oslo, Norway, and Scientific Co-ordinator of the PLATO network.

Peter Bursens is Jean Monnet Chair and Professor of Political Science at the Department of Political Science of the University of Antwerp, Belgium.

Dirk De Bièvre is Professor of International Politics at the University of Antwerp, Belgium.

Jarle Trondal is a Professor at University of Agder, Department of Political Science and Management, and a Professor at the University of Oslo, ARENA Centre for European Studies, Norway.

Ramses A. Wessel is Professor of European Law and Head of the Department of European and Economic Law at the University of Groningen, Netherlands.