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Left-wing populism
The Voice of the Square
«We the people, against those at the top.»
Pits the people against the economic and financial oligarchy. Wants redistribution, democratic sovereignty over economic choices and more participation.
In short
On the traditional scale, this ideology sits in the left camp. The clearest positions are on democracy: strongly towards “direct democracy”; economy: strongly towards “equality”; method: strongly towards “rupture”; foreign policy: fairly towards “pacifism”. On state, technology, devolution and immigration it stays balanced. Among the other ideologies, the closest is techno-populism (95%).
Principles
- The people vs. the oligarchy
- Democratic sovereignty over the economy
- Redistribution
Uniting the demands of the many against economic and financial elites, with straight-talking language.
Common criticisms
Where it comes from
It took shape in the 2010s with Podemos in Spain and Syriza in Greece, building on the ideas of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe.
Key figures: Jean-Luc Mélenchon, Giuseppe Conte
Further reading: For a Left Populism — Chantal Mouffe; Populism: A Very Short Introduction — Cas Mudde and Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser
Position on the 13 axes
Similar ideologies
Techno-populismThe Voice of the Web95%Radical democracyThe Assembly91%Left-wing sovereigntismThe Sovereign Rebel91%Closest parties in Europe
Sinn FéinIreland95%
Socialistische PartijNetherlands94%
ELASGreece93%
Movimento 5 StelleItaly93%Closest figures
Positions are estimates based on documented ideas, platforms and actions, updated to October 2026.