Popular sovereignty in its modern sense, is an idea that dates to the social contracts school (mid-17th to mid-18th centuries), represented by Thomas Hobbes (1588 -- 1679), John Locke (1632 -- 1704), and Jean - Jacques Rousseau (1712 -- 1778), author of The Social Contract, a prominent political work that clearly highlighted the ideals of "general will '' and further matured the idea of popular sovereignty. The central tenet is that legitimacy of rule or of law is based on the consent of the governed. Popular sovereignty is thus a basic tenet of most Republics. Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau were the most influential thinkers of this school, all postulating that individuals choose to enter into a social contract with one another, thus voluntarily giving up some of their natural freedom in return for protection from dangers derived from the freedom of others. Whether men were seen as naturally more prone to violence and rapine (Hobbes) or cooperation and kindness (Rousseau), the idea that a legitimate social order emerges only when the liberties and duties are equal among citizens binds the social contract thinkers to the concept of popular sovereignty.
where did the idea of popular sovereignty come from
the social contracts school (mid-17th to mid-18th centuries), represented by Thomas Hobbes (1588 -- 1679), John Locke (1632 -- 1704), and Jean - Jacques Rousseau (1712 -- 1778)