Trym Nohr Fjørtoft
LightNews LightNews
trymnf.com
Trym Nohr Fjørtoft
@trymnf.com
150 followers 310 following 10 posts
political science postdoc, University of Oslo.
trymnf.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
trymnf.com
My Technical Legitimacy piece is now out in @polstudies.bsky.social! Pretty happy with this one, where I try to sort out the common claim that neutrality and expertise may be sources of legitimacy for unelected bodies.
➡ doi.org/10.1177/0032...
Abstract: In studies of non-majoritarian institutions, there is a widespread idea that political neutrality, epistemic authority, and technical expertise are sources of legitimacy. Empirical studies tend to find that such appeals are effective sources of legitimacy, but theorists are overwhelmingly skeptical of their normative appeal. This article’s conceptual ambition is to unify the disparate debates under the term technical legitimacy. The article’s theoretical ambition is to improve on the normative debate on technical legitimacy. Existing defenses fail to robustly satisfy the reasons that ground delegation to non-majoritarian institutions. I propose conditions for accepting technical legitimacy that are reasonably robust against counterfactuals. Technical legitimacy must meet three criteria. Institutions must promote a functionally specified common good; build on sound and undistorted expertise; and, perhaps counterintuitively, contain appropriate venues for value input.
January 27, 2026 at 9:07 AM
trymnf.com
My paper "Technical Legitimacy" has just been accepted for publication in @polstudies.bsky.social. A preprint available here for those who just can't wait for the typeset version: www.trymnf.com/files/papers...
Abstract: In studies of non-majoritarian institutions, there is a widespread idea that political neutrality, epistemic authority, and technical expertise are sources of legitimacy. Empirical studies tend to find that such appeals are effective sources of legitimacy, but theorists are overwhelmingly skeptical of their normative appeal. This paper’s conceptual ambition is to unify the disparate debates under the term technical legitimacy. The paper’s theoretical ambition is to improve on the normative debate on technical legitimacy. Existing defenses fail to robustly satisfy the reasons that ground delegation to non-majoritarian institutions. I propose conditions for accepting technical legitimacy that are reasonably robust against counterfactuals. Technical legitimacy must meet three criteria. Institutions must promote a functionally specified common good; build on sound and undistorted expertise; and, perhaps counterintuitively, contain appropriate venues for value input.
December 15, 2025 at 11:22 AM