Prof. Annabelle Lever — Sciences Po Paris / CEVIPOF
This talk argues that the right to stand for office is an essential and irreducible component of democratic equality. While the right to vote has been extensively analysed, the right to stand has received comparatively little attention, distorting both the theory and evaluation of electoral democracy. I argue that citizens’ claims as candidates cannot be reduced to their claims as voters, because the two roles correspond to distinct forms of political agency. This insight has implications for how we understand representation, the critique of elections as inherently aristocratic, and proposals to replace them with sortition. It also bears on the role of political parties, whose control over candidature can undermine the equal standing of citizens as potential participants in government. Taking the right to stand seriously therefore requires rethinking the normative foundations of electoral democracy and the conditions under which citizens can govern themselves as equals.