Which constitutional principle, as articulated through Montesquieu's influence, involves distributing power among separate branches and providing checks on each other?

Which constitutional principle, as articulated through Montesquieu's influence, involves distributing power among separate branches and providing checks on each other?

• A. Popular sovereignty
• B. Federalism
• C. Separation of powers and checks and balances
• D. Judicial review

Answer: (C)

Distributing power among separate branches with checks on each other is Montesquieu’s influence on constitutional design. He argued that dividing government into legislative, executive, and judicial functions and giving each branch ways to limit the others helps prevent the concentration of power and protects liberty. In practice, laws are made, implemented, and interpreted by different branches, with mechanisms like vetoes, appointments, impeachment, and judicial interpretation serving as checks and balances to keep any one branch from overpowering the rest. Other ideas describe different arrangements: popular sovereignty emphasizes the people as the ultimate source of authority, federalism focuses on power division between national and state governments, and judicial review is the courts’ power to strike down unconstitutional laws (a later development). So the principle described is separation of powers and checks and balances.

Distributing power among separate branches with checks on each other is Montesquieu’s influence on constitutional design. He argued that dividing government into legislative, executive, and judicial functions and giving each branch ways to limit the others helps prevent the concentration of power and protects liberty. In practice, laws are made, implemented, and interpreted by different branches, with mechanisms like vetoes, appointments, impeachment, and judicial interpretation serving as checks and balances to keep any one branch from overpowering the rest. Other ideas describe different arrangements: popular sovereignty emphasizes the people as the ultimate source of authority, federalism focuses on power division between national and state governments, and judicial review is the courts’ power to strike down unconstitutional laws (a later development). So the principle described is separation of powers and checks and balances.