Exile Political Representation
23 Pages Posted: 1 Oct 2016 Last revised: 19 Dec 2018
Date Written: May 19, 2015
Abstract
This article engages in democratic theory and transnational politics by examining exile political representation, a long-standing but underexplored instance of transnational politics. It argues that in order to be valid -- which is distinct from being democratically legitimate -- a representative claim involves three elements: authorisation of the putative representative by her putative constituents, the putative representative acting in the interests of her putative constituents, and the putative representative being held accountable. The article considers the extent to which these elements can be satisfied through informal means and in the non-ideal circumstances surrounding exile politics. It argues that political representation should be regarded as a scalar concept and representative claims should be regarded as being more or less valid. It concludes by identifying the mechanisms that may render exiles' representative claims more valid, and suggests other democratically legitimate or desirable roles that they can play in the political communities they have left.
Keywords: political representation, exile, transnational politics
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