consent of the governed
Popular political authorization
Consent of the governed is a foundational principle of democratic political theory holding that a government's legitimacy derives from the approval of those it governs.
The concept, central to Enlightenment thinkers like John Locke, shaped the American Declaration of Independence's assertion that governments derive "their just powers from the consent of the governed." In practice, this consent is typically expressed through voting, though debates persist about whether passive acceptance or active participation constitutes genuine consent.
- referendumDirect vote on legislation
- peopleHumans as a group
- voteFormal choice expression
- plebisciteDirect vote by citizens
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
elect · social contract · natural rights · inalienable rights · sovereignty · democracy · common good · Declaration of Independence · founding fathers · Glorious Revolution · political legitimacy · deliberation · Magna Carta · authority · civic virtue · suffrage movements · ballot · voting rights
- ConstitutionBill of Rights, preamble, articles, U.S. Constitution, Article I
- enlightenmentVoltaire, Rousseau, Locke, Kant, Montesquieu
- Founding Principlesinalienable rights, unalienable rights, natural rights, popular sovereignty, separation of powers
consent of the governeddivine right of kings
Monarchs rule by celestial mandate
divine right · mandate of heaven · theocracy · absolute monarchy · hereditary rule
consent of the governedtyranny
Oppressive, absolute governance
despotism · autocracy · subjugation · domination · dictatorship
consent, consenting, consented, consensus, consensual, consensually, dissenter, assent, sensory