Anti-Oligarchization Mechanisms in Emerging Parties The Case of Podemos
- The financial crisis of 2008 and the austerity period that ensured entailed a redefinition of democracy and the role of political parties in Europe. In this context, a wave of emerging parties place participation at the heart of their political program to reform the system from within. Thus, they aim not only to revive representative democracy but also internal democracy. The present study tests whether their implementation of anti-oligarchization mechanisms is successful in rejecting Robert Michels ‘iron law of oligarchy’. By conducting a micro-ethnography on the Berlin circle of Podemos, it revealed that the party is successful at preventing oligarchy. While oligarchization trends are present, they are countered by an overall strategy for participation and three specific mechanisms: the circle, digital tools and gender equality.