CONSTRUCTING POLITICAL LEADERSHIP AND DEMOCRATIC LEGITIMACY IN KEIR STARMER'S RESIGNATION SPEECH: A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS

Abstract

The aim of this research is to examine Keir Starmer's resignation speech through Fairclough's (1992) Three-Dimensional Model of Critical Discourse Analysis to investigate how discourse constructs political leadership, accountability, legitimacy, and institutional continuity. Adopting a qualitative research design, the research employs McKee's (2003) textual analysis as the method of analysis. The data consist of Keir Starmer's resignation speech, which is analyzed across the three dimensions of Fairclough's model: text, discursive practice, and social practice. The findings reveal that Starmer strategically employs lexical choices, pronouns, modality, repetition, metaphor, and evaluative language to construct a responsible leadership identity and legitimize his resignation. At the level of discursive practice, the speech reflects the institutional conventions of British parliamentary democracy while guiding audience interpretation through intertextuality, genre conventions, and media-oriented communication. At the level of social practice, the discourse reproduces broader democratic values by reinforcing accountability, public service, constitutional continuity, national unity, and confidence in political institutions. The research extends the application of Fairclough's Three-Dimensional Model to the relatively underexplored genre of political resignation speeches and contributes to a deeper understanding of how discourse functions to preserve political legitimacy and democratic stability during leadership transition.