Representation in TTIP and TPP: Inclusion, Deliberation, and Politicization

International negotiations increasingly face gridlock. Attempts to overcome stalemate by involving fewer actors – as exemplified by the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) – are also failing as negotiation secrecy piques interest and generates politicization. This paper seeks to understand which groups have been represented in TTIP and the TPP negotiations, with a specific focus on which interest groups are included and excluded from government positions. The paper employs frame analysis to explore which interests have been represented in negotiations and which have been marginalized especially in the areas of intellectual property, environment, and investor-state dispute settlement. Based on this analysis, the paper explores to what extent (under-)representation has fueled critiques of (il)legitimacy and, ultimately, engendered politicization of both TTIP and TPP. The paper thus sheds light on the academic question of how new modes of minilateralism are generating demands for legitimacy through representation. This in turn speaks to the policy question about how gridlock in these negotiations can be overcome.