In the age of various republics and democracies with different suffixes, every state seeks to identify itself with a republic and democratic model concomitant with its attitude toward the universe and human being. The objective of this paper is to understand people’s status in the Islamic political system. The main question of this research is as follows:  On the basis of which approach to the Islamic government one can speak of the people’s pivotal role in the Islamic government? The main question of this research is as follows: Which conception of an Islamic state can be considered a basis for central role of the people in an Islamic government? The hypothesis of this research is: A democratic interpretation of the notion of ‘man as vicegerent of God” (Caliph of God) on the earth can be considered a basis for people`s agency and mutual interaction between the people and the political power. As a result, the exercise of legitimate political power will be linked to the representative structures. This approach considers the Islamic state as a ‘civil state,’ which highlights the interactive, democratic model of the Islamic state vis-à-vis the authoritarian model of the Islamic caliphate. To verify the hypothesis, a conceptual framework has been developed, whose constituent elements are: ‘indirect agency, ‘communicative power’ (canonical-normative), and ‘people-based divine sovereignty’. This paper is an attempt to study the ideas of four contemporary modernist Muslim thinkers, i.e., Muhammad Abduh and Abd al-Rahmanal-Kawakibi (the early generations) and Yusuf al-Qaradawi and Rached al-Ghannouchi (in the late era). Descriptive-analytical method has been employed to analyze the data collected through library research and internet sources.