Claims of Representation: Between Representation and Democratic Innovations

This article seeks to build a bridge between the empirical scholarship rooted in traditional theory of political representation and constructivist on by focusing authorization claims. It answer how claims can be authorized beyond elections - selecting three democratic innovations tracing through claim-making process. Different participatory are selected providing various taking place different institutional contexts, i.e., (elected) members Council Foreigners Frankfurt; individual citizens budgeting procedures Münster; citizen’s associations elected politicians referendum campaign Hamburg. We first analyze raised claim-makers identify their claimed constituency eligible authorize In second step, we focus relevant decision-making authority. The finds that is fractured incomplete. Nevertheless, this not reason dismiss as possible loci representation; contrary, seen prism claim-making, all – electoral nonelectoral partial. Focusing provides novel inferences about potential limits for broadening