Jones, B.C. orcid.org/0000-0003-2344-976X (2018) Constitutions and bills of rights: invigorating or placating democracy? Legal Studies, 38 (3). pp. 339-359. ISSN 0261-3875
Abstract
Champions of constitutions and bills of rights regularly portray them as possessing significant, sometimes mysterious, powers. One characterisation is that newly implemented constitutions may invigorate a democracy, particularly at the ballot box. This paper challenges that notion by scrutinising a relatively unexplored area of constitutional performance: voter turnout. In particular, it examines a number of jurisdictions that have recently implemented constitutions and bill of rights, finding that in many of them, voter turnout decreased after passage, sometimes significantly. As the argument for a codified British constitution endures, the findings of this paper provide provisional evidence that those advocating for such a device should be wary of touting its potentially invigorating democratic effects. Ultimately, however, the paper calls for more research into the area of constitutions and democratic performance, such as voter turnout.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2018 The Society of Legal Scholars. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Legal Studies. Article available under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). |
Keywords: | constitutions; bills of rights; constitutional theory; democratic participation; voting; democracy-reinforcing; democracy-hindering |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > School of Law (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 20 Jan 2020 14:59 |
Last Modified: | 01 Jul 2020 12:02 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1017/lst.2017.26 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:155047 |
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Filename: Constitutions and Bills of Rights - Legal Studies - Accepted.pdf
Licence: CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0