The radical left's turn towards civil society in Greece: One strategy, two paths

Tsakatika, M. and Eleftheriou, C. (2013) The radical left's turn towards civil society in Greece: One strategy, two paths. South European Society and Politics, 18(1), pp. 81-99. (doi: 10.1080/13608746.2012.757455)

Abstract

The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) and the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) made remarkable ‘turns towards civil society’ over the last decade. It is argued that this was primarily a response aimed at strengthening their social legitimacy, which had reached its lowest point in the early 1990s. Differences in the way the two parties attempted to stabilise and engage their membership and re-establish links to trade unions and new social movements can be attributed to their distinct ideological and organisational legacies. Despite those differences, their respective linkage strategies were both successful until the game-changing 2012 Greek national elections, which brought about the remarkable rise of SYRIZA and the electoral demise of the KKE.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: Special issue: Transformation of the Radical Left in Southern Europe: Bringing society back in? (M. Tsakatika and M. Lisi (eds.))
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Tsakatika, Professor Myrto
• Authors: Tsakatika, M., and Eleftheriou, C.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics
• Journal Name: South European Society and Politics
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• ISSN: 1360-8746
• ISSN (Online): 1743-9612
• Published Online: 30 January 2013
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2013 Taylor and Francis
• First Published: First published in South European Society and Politics 18(1):81-99
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher