Political justice in a complex global order: rethinking pluralist legitimacy.

The article focuses on principles of global political justice, which define how governing institutional powers in global society should be constituted and exercised under moral constraints that respect individuals' equal autonomy. It critiques the dominant twentieth-century liberal internationalist model—based on territorial governance, national legitimation, and human rights responsibility—and argues that globalization has produced legitimacy crises that this model cannot adequately address. Drawing on claims from global justice activists, the article proposes a normative reconstruction toward a complex pluralist legitimacy framework, which recognizes diverse, overlapping, and transnational governance institutions and legitimating communities beyond traditional state boundaries. This complex pluralist model emphasizes expanded forms of political inclusion and participation suited to the dynamic, interdependent nature of twenty-first-century global political order.