Constitutional liberalism

Short description: Form of government

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Liberalism

History

* Age of Enlightenment
* List of liberal theorists (contributions to liberal theory)

Ideas

* Civil and political rights
* Cultural liberalism
* Democracy
* Democratic capitalism
* Economic freedom
* Economic liberalism
* Egalitarianism
* Free market
* Free trade
* Freedom of the press
* Freedom of religion
* Freedom of speech
* Gender equality
* Harm principle
* Internationalism
* Laissez-faire
* Liberty
* Market economy
* Natural and legal rights
* Negative/positive liberty
* Non-aggression Principle
* Open society
* Permissive society
* Private property
* Rule of law
* Secularism
* Separation of church and state
* Social contract
* Welfare state

Schools of thought

* Anarcho-capitalism
* Classical liberalism
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* Left-libertarianism
* Geolibertarianism
* Right-libertarianism
* Conservative liberalism
* Democratic liberalism
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* Liberal autocracy
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* Liberal feminism
* Equity feminism
* Liberal internationalism
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* Social liberalism
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People

* Acton
* Alain
* Alberdi
* Alembert
* Arnold
* Aron
* Barante
* Bastiat
* Bentham
* Berlin
* Beveridge
* Bobbio
* Brentano
* Bright
* Broglie
* Burke
* Čapek
* Cassirer
* Chicherin
* Chu
* Chydenius
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* Collingdood
* Condorcet
* Constant
* Croce
* Cuoco
* Dahrendorf
* Decy
* Dewey
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* Diderot
* Dongsun
* Dunoyer
* Dworkin
* Emerson
* Eötvös
* Flach
* Friedman
* Galbraith
* Garrison
* George
* Gladstone
* Gobetti
* Gomes
* Gray
* Green
* Gu
* Guizot
* Hayek
* Herbert
* Hobbes
* Hobhouse
* Hobson
* Holbach
* Hu
* Humboldt
* Jefferson
* Jubani
* Kant
* Kelsen
* Kemal
* Keynes
* Korais
* Korwin-Mikke
* Kymplcka
* Lamartine
* Larra
* Lecky
* Li
* Locke
* Lufti
* Macaulay
* Madariaga
* Madison
* Martineau
* Masani
* Michelet
* Mill (father)
* Mill (son)
* Milton
* Mises
* Molteno
* Mommsen
* Money
* Montalembert
* Montesquieu
* Mora
* Mouffe
* Naoroji
* Naumann
* Nozick
* Nussbaum
* Ohlin
* Ortega
* Paine
* Paton
* Popper
* Price
* Priestley
* Prieto
* Quesnay
* Qin
* Ramírez
* Rathenau
* Rawls
* Raz
* Renan
* Renouvier
* Ricardo
* Röpke
* Rorthy
* Rosmini
* Rosselli
* Rousseau
* Ruggiero
* Sarmiento
* Say
* Sen
* Earl of Shaftesbury
* Shklar
* Sidney
* Sieyès
* Şinasi
* Sismondi
* Smith
* Soto Polar
* Spencer
* Spinoza
* Staël
* Sumner
* Tahtawi
* Tao
* Thierry
* Thorbecke
* Thoreau
* Tocqueville
* Tracy
* Troeltsch
* Turgot
* Villemain
* Voltaire
* Ward
* Weber
* Wollstonecraft
* Zambrano

Organizations

* Africa Liberal Network
* Alliance of Liberals
and Democrats for Europe
* Alliance of Liberals
and Democrats for Europe Party
* Arab Liberal Federation
* Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats
* European Democratic Party
* European Liberal Youth
* European Party for Individual Liberty
* International Alliance of Libertarian Parties
* International Federation of Liberal Youth
* Liberal International
* Liberal Network for Latin America
* Liberal parties
* Liberal South East European Network

Regional variants

* Europe
* Latin America
* Albania
* Armenia
* Australia
* Austria
* Belgium
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Bulgaria
* Canada
* China
* Chile
* Colombia
* Croatia
* Cuba
* Cyprus
* Czech lands
* Denmark
* Ecuador
* Egypt
* Estonia
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Honduras
* Hong Kong
* Hungary
* Iceland
* India
* Iran
* Israel
* Italy
* Japan
* Latvia
* Lithuania
* Luxembourg
* Macedonia
* Mexico
* Moldova
* Montenegro
* Netherlands
* New Zealand
* Nicaragua
* Nigeria
* Norway
* Panama
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Philippines
* Poland
* Portugal
* Romania
* Russia
* Senegal
* Serbia
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain
* South Africa
* South Korea
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Taiwan
* Thailand
* Tunisia
* Turkey
* Ukraine
* United Kingdom
* United States
* Classical
* Modern
* Uruguay
* Venezuela
* Zimbabwe

Related topics

* Bias in academia
* Bias in the media

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Constitutional liberalism is a form of government that upholds the principles of classical liberalism and the rule of law. It differs from liberal democracy in that it is not about the method of selecting government.[1]

The journalist and scholar Fareed Zakaria explains that constitutional liberalism "is about government's goals. It refers to the tradition, deep in Western history, that seeks to protect an individual's autonomy and dignity against coercion, whatever the source—state, church, or society".[2] In a constitutionally liberal state, a liberal market is regulated and protected at the level of the constitution and so trade is mostly free, but not entirely unhampered.[3]

Throughout history, democracy is becoming more common around the world, but it has been in decline for the last several decades.[4] Freedom House reported that in 2018 there were 116 electoral democracies.[5] Many of these countries are not constitutionally liberal and can be described as illiberal democracies.[6][7]

Constitutional liberalism is different from liberal constitutionalism. While the former asserts values of personal sovereignty at a constitutional level, the latter guards freedom to assert ones own values in the constitution.[8] Liberal constitutionalism, according to sociologist Kim Lane Scheppele, "honored the rights of individuals by setting limits on what governments could do in the name of majorities and requiring that the institutions of a democratic state remain accountable and limited."[9]

## See also

* Classical liberalism
* Constitutionalism
* Democratic ideals
* History of democracy
* Illiberal democracy
* Liberal democracy
* Night-watchman state
* Social liberalism

## References

1. ↑ Shapiro, Nathan (27 January 2014). "It's Not Democracy You Want...It's Liberalism". http://assentmagazine.wordpress.com/2014/01/27/its-not-democracy-you-wantits-liberalism/. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
2. ↑ Zakaria, Fareed (November 1997). "The Rise of Illiberal Democracy". Foreign Affairs. http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/53577/fareed-zakaria/the-rise-of-illiberal-democracy. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
3. ↑ Vanberg, Victor (1999). "Markets and Regulation: On the Contrast Between Free-Market Liberalism and Constitutional Liberalism.". Constitutional Political Economy 10 (3): 219–243. doi:10.1023/A:1009007511719. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1023/A:1009007511719.pdf.
4. ↑ "Freedom in the World 2019". https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/freedom-world-2019.
5. ↑ "Freedom in the World 2018". https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world-2018-table-country-scores.
6. ↑ "Freedom in the World 2013". Freedom House. http://www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/freedom-world-2013#.Uve5o2SwIaM. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
7. ↑ Plattner, Marc (28 January 2009). "Liberalism and Democracy: Can't Have One Without the Other". Foreign Affairs. http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/53815/marc-f-plattner/liberalism-and-democracy-cant-have-one-without-the-other. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
8. ↑ Vanberg, Victor (2011). "Liberal Constitutionalism, Constitutional Liberalism and Democracy". Constitutional Political Economy 22: 1–20. doi:10.1007/s10602-010-9090-8. https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/36458/1/617387559.pdf.
9. ↑ Scheppele, Kim L. (2018). "Autocratic Legalism". University of Chicago Law Review. 85 (2): 345–442. Retrieved July 18, 2025.

## Further reading

* Zakaria, Fareed (2007). The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad (Revised Edition). W.W. Norton and Company. ISBN 978-0393331523.

* v
* t
* e

Liberalism

Development|

* Contributions to liberal theory
* History of liberalism

Ideas|

* Civil and political rights
* Democracy
* Economic freedom
* Egalitarianism
* Free market
* Free trade
* Freedom of the press
* Freedom of religion
* Freedom of speech
* Gender equality
* Harm principle
* Internationalism
* Laissez-faire
* Liberty
* Market economy
* Natural and legal rights
* Natural law
* Negative/Positive liberty
* Open society
* Permissive society
* Private property
* Rule of law
* Secularism
* Separation of church and state
* Social contract
* Welfare state

Schools|

* Anarcho-capitalism
* Classical
* Radical
* Left-libertarianism
* Geolibertarianism
* Right-libertarianism
* Liberal conservatism
* Constitutional patriotism
* Civic nationalism
* Conservative
* Cultural
* Democratic
* Economic
* Green
* Liberal feminism
* Equity feminism
* Liberal internationalism
* Liberal socialism
* Social democracy
* Muscular
* National
* Neo
* Ordo
* Radical centrism
* Religious
* Christian
* Islamic
* Secular
* Social
* Techno
* Third Way

Key figures|

* Acton
* Alain
* Alberdi
* Alembert
* Arnold
* Aron
* Barante
* Bastiat
* Bentham
* Berlin
* Beveridge
* Bobbio
* Brentano
* Bright
* Broglie
* Burke
* Čapek
* Cassirer
* Chicherin
* Chu
* Chydenius
* Cobden
* Collingdood
* Condorcet
* Constant
* Croce
* Cuoco
* Dahrendorf
* Decy
* Dewey
* Dickens
* Diderot
* Dongsun
* Dunoyer
* Dworkin
* Emerson
* Eötvös
* Flach
* Friedman
* Galbraith
* Garrison
* George
* Gladstone
* Gobetti
* Gomes
* Gray
* Green
* Gu
* Guizot
* Hayek
* Herbert
* Hobbes
* Hobhouse
* Hobson
* Holbach
* Hu
* Humboldt
* Jefferson
* Jubani
* Kant
* Kelsen
* Kemal
* Keynes
* Korais
* Korwin-Mikke
* Kymplcka
* Lamartine
* Larra
* Lecky
* Li
* Locke
* Lufti
* Macaulay
* Madariaga
* Madison
* Martineau
* Masani
* Michelet
* Mill (father)
* Mill (son)
* Milton
* Mises
* Molteno
* Mommsen
* Money
* Montalembert
* Montesquieu
* Mora
* Mouffe
* Naoroji
* Naumann
* Nozick
* Nussbaum
* Ohlin
* Ortega
* Paine
* Paton
* Popper
* Price
* Priestley
* Prieto
* Quesnay
* Qin
* Ramírez
* Rathenau
* Rawls
* Raz
* Renan
* Renouvier
* Ricardo
* Röpke
* Rorthy
* Rosmini
* Rosselli
* Rousseau
* Ruggiero
* Sarmiento
* Say
* Sen
* Earl of Shaftesbury
* Shklar
* Sidney
* Sieyès
* Şinasi
* Sismondi
* Smith
* Soto Polar
* Spencer
* Spinoza
* Staël
* Sumner
* Tahtawi
* Tao
* Thierry
* Thorbecke
* Thoreau
* Tocqueville
* Tracy
* Troeltsch
* Turgot
* Villemain
* Voltaire
* Ward
* Weber
* Wollstonecraft
* Zambrano

Regional variants|

* Africa
* Egypt
* Nigeria
* Senegal
* South Africa
* Tunisia
* Zimbabwe
* Asia
* China
* Hong Kong
* India
* Iran
* Israel
* Japan
* South Korea
* Philippines
* Taiwan
* Thailand
* Turkey
* Europe
* Albania
* Armenia
* Austria
* Belgium
* Bulgaria
* Croatia
* Cyprus
* Czech lands
* Denmark
* Estonia
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Hungary
* Iceland
* Italy
* Latvia
* Lithuania
* Luxembourg
* Macedonia
* Moldova
* Montenegro
* Netherlands
* Norway
* Poland
* Portugal
* Romania
* Russia
* Serbia
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Ukraine
* United Kingdom
* Latin America and the Caribbean
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Chile
* Colombia
* Cuba
* Ecuador
* Honduras
* Mexico
* Nicaragua
* Panama
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Uruguay
* North America
* Canada
* United States
* Classical
* Modern
* Oceania
* Australia
* New Zealand

Organisations|

* Africa Liberal Network
* Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
* Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party
* Arab Liberal Federation
* Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats
* European Democratic Party
* European Liberal Youth
* European Party for Individual Liberty
* International Alliance of Libertarian Parties
* International Federation of Liberal Youth
* Liberal International
* Liberal Network for Latin America
* Liberal parties
* Liberal South East European Network

See also|

* Bias in academia
* Bias in the media

* Liberalism portal

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