Republicanism is a political ideology that emphasizes the participation of citizens for the common good of the community. It is centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic, which ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. Republicanism has had different definitions and interpretations that vary significantly based on historical context and methodological approach. Here are some key characteristics of republicanism:

• Self-rule: Historically, republicanism emphasizes the idea of self-rule, where each citizen is engaged in a direct relationship with the state, removing the need for identity politics based on local, religious, or racial identification.

• Public rights and obligations: Republicanism stresses the public rights and obligations of citizens to cooperate in support of their community, in contrast to liberalism, which is concerned primarily with the personal and private rights of individuals.

• Virtuous and autonomous citizens: Republican citizens should exercise self-control for the common good, and public officials must subordinate their personal ambitions for the good of the community.

• Liberty: Republicanism is based on the assumption that liberty and power continually battle.

• Civic virtue: Republicanism symbolizes a commitment to civic virtue, which is the idea that citizens should be virtuous and autonomous.

Republicanism is rooted in the political and civic ideas of classical antiquity, as they were expressed and practiced in the city-communities of Greece and in the Republic of Rome. The founders of the United States of America combined ideas of republicanism and liberalism in their establishment of a constitutional government designed to guarantee the inherent and inalienable rights of individuals. The US Constitution’s preamble provides a neat summary of the concept of republicanism in the US:

“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

Overall, republicanism is a political philosophy that emphasizes the importance of civic virtue, public rights and obligations, and self-rule for the common good of the community.