Constituent Power and Secession

This paper will critically analyse the role that constituent power– or claims to the constituent power– plays in secessionist movements. This paper contends that when constituent power is conceptualised as 'the people', we lose any analytical tools to grapple with the problem of secession. However, if we think about alternative conceptions of constituent power we can avoid this analytical vacuum and think more critically about the legitimacy of secessionist movements.