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volkssovereiniteit

Volksoevereiniteit is the political principle that sovereignty rests with the people rather than with a monarch, a single ruler, or a closed elite. In its ideal form, the legitimacy of political power derives from the consent of the governed and is exercised through institutions, laws and procedures established by a constitution. In Dutch and broader European political thought the term is closely linked to liberal constitutionalism and republican ideas; in English-language contexts it is commonly called popular sovereignty.

Historically, volksoevereiniteit traces to Enlightenment thinkers such as Rousseau and Locke, and to revolutions that framed

In practice, popular sovereignty is realized through institutions that channel the people's will while safeguarding individual

See also: popular sovereignty, constitutionalism, democracy, rule of law, direct democracy, representative democracy.

government
as
deriving
authority
from
the
people.
The
American
Declaration
of
Independence
and
the
French
Revolution
asserted
that
sovereignty
resides
in
the
people
or
in
the
nation
as
a
whole,
not
in
a
hereditary
or
arbitrary
authority.
In
the
Netherlands
and
other
constitutional
states,
this
principle
has
been
integrated
into
systems
of
constitutional
monarchy
and
representative
democracy,
whereby
the
people
exercise
sovereign
power
through
elections,
constitutional
votes,
and
the
mechanisms
of
accountability.
rights.
Laws
require
legitimacy
from
the
governed,
and
constitutions
provide
checks
and
balances,
often
including
judicial
review
and
protection
of
minority
rights.
Debates
persist
about
how
to
balance
direct
expression
of
the
will
with
the
stability
of
governance,
and
how
to
guard
against
majoritarian
abuses
or
populism.