When the People Rule : Popular Sovereignty in Theory and Practice

In recent decades, popular sovereignty has come under increasing pressure. The rise of populism, often illiberal or authoritarian, has undermined minority rights, individual autonomy, and rule of law. The expansion of international institutions and greater reliance on market and non-governmental organizations have gradually insulated large areas of policymaking from public control. In turn, these developments cast doubt on the viability and desirability of liberal democracy itself. When the People Rule argues that comprehending and responding to the political crises of our time requires a radical refocusing on popular sovereignty. Each chapter offers a fresh perspective and opens new avenues of inquiry into popular sovereignty, advancing debate over the very heart of this principle - what it means for the people to rule. Thorough and timely, this volume is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Ewa Atanassow is Professor of Political Thought at Bard College, Berlin. She is the author of Tocqueville's Dilemmas, and Ours: Sovereignty, Nationalism, Globalization (2022).

Thomas Bartscherer is the Peter Sourian Senior Lecturer in the Humanities at Bard College. He is co-editor of the critical edition of Hannah Arendt's The Life of the Mind, Switching Codes: Thinking Through Digital Technology in the Humanities and Arts and Erotikon: Essay on Eros, Ancient and Modern.

David A. Bateman is Associate Professor in Government and the Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy at Cornell University. He is the author Disenfranchising Democracy (2018) and co-author of Southern Nations (2018).