Download This PaperPersonalism and the Trajectories of Populist Constitutionalism
16 Annual Review of Law and Social Science __ (2020 Forthcoming)
18 Pages Posted: 30 Apr 2020
Date Written: 2020
Abstract
This essay reassesses the relationship between populism, democracy, and constitutionalism in light of the strong tendency towards personalism that populism often carries. Populists who have taken power in recent years have often sought to carry out formal or informal constitutional changes. While some of these changes have been celebrated as constitutional innovations, many have been viewed as threats to democracy. Focusing on examples from Latin America, this essay shows that despite the stress populists put on constitutional change, the phenomenon remains tied to the charisma of individual leaders. Populist leaders go to great lengths to remain in office, and succession poses an acute regime crisis. A core task for constitutional design is incentivizing populist leaders to leave power, more likely by channeling politics than by judicial decision. If this can be accomplished, the ultimate legacy of populist constitutions may be more beneficial, and less harmful, than commonly thought.
Keywords: populism, constitutionalism, liberal democratic constitutionalism, democratic erosion, Latin American constitutionalism
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David Landau (Contact Author)
Florida State University - College of Law ( email )
425 W. Jefferson Street
Tallahassee, FL 32306
United States