Question

Difficulty: MediumSovereignty: Concept, Types, Characteristics, and Limitations

In political theory, the characteristic of indivisibility implies that supreme legal sovereignty is divided and shared between central and state governments in a federal system.

Answer: Answer

Answer

False. Sovereignty is conceptually indivisible; while federalism distributes governmental powers between central and regional tiers, ultimate legal sovereignty remains unified within the constitution.
The statement is false because sovereignty is inherently indivisible. Although a federal constitution divides administrative and legislative powers between central and state governments, legal sovereignty remains undivided and resides in the constitution.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Examine the defining characteristic of indivisibility in political theory.
Indivisibility specifies that supreme legal power cannot be split into multiple competing ultimate authorities within a state.
Fragmenting sovereignty destroys the supreme legal order of a state.
2
Differentiate between the division of governmental powers and the division of sovereignty in a federal system.
Federalism divides functional powers (legislative, executive) across levels of government, while ultimate legal sovereignty rests intact with the constitutional amendatory framework.
Distributing administrative and legislative competence does not divide supreme legal sovereignty.

Key Concept

Indivisibility of Sovereignty vs Constitutional Division of Powers
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