This webinar, organized by the Université Libre de Bruxelles (Cevipol) and the Université de Liège (Pragmapolis), brings together scholars studying the radical left through complementary analytical lenses, discourse analysis, political sociology of militantism, municipal governance, and strategic framing, to map contemporary crises and understand how different dimensions of radical left politics interact and contradict.

The European radical left is at a critical juncture. After the electoral expansion following the 2008 financial crisis, radical left parties (RLPs) across Europe now face unprecedented challenges: declining militant engagement, the loss of ideological coherence, contradictions between electoral positioning and grassroots expectations, and strategic dilemmas when accessing power at local and national levels. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has further exposed profound fractures within the radical left, forcing parties to renegotiate foundational commitments to pacifism, anti-imperialism, and international solidarity.

This webinar brings together scholars studying the radical left through complementary analytical lenses, discourse analysis, political sociology of militantism, municipal governance, and strategic framing, to map these contemporary crises and understand how different dimensions of radical left politics interact and contradict.

Thematic axes and key questions 

The seminar will examine the following five thematic areas.

AXIS 1: MILITANCY AND INTERNAL PLURALISM

Contemporary radical left parties face a structural tension between street-level activists prioritizing ideological consistency and institutional role-holders navigating bureaucratic constraints. This coexistence generates ongoing conflict within party structures rather than a simple "decline of activism."

AXIS 2: MUNICIPAL POWER AND THE GOVERNANCE DILEMMA

Radical left municipalities across Europe face the contradiction of operating within neo liberal municipal governance while claiming anti-systemic ideology. The question is not individual compromission but how structural constraints reshape political practice.

AXIS 3: IDEOLOGICAL GAPS AND BLIND SPOTS

Radical left parties lack developed positions on national identity, security, migration, technology, and ecological transformation. These strategic silences create political vulnerabilities and allow other actors to occupy the space.

AXIS 4: FOREIGN POLICY DISCOURSE UNDER PRESSURE

Geopolitical crises, from Ukraine to Palestine to the Middle East, expose fundamental divisions within the radical left-over imperialism, pacifism, military intervention, and international solidarity. Foreign policy articulations reveal the radical left's entire worldview regarding international order and anti-imperialism.

Scientific Committee

Jacopo Viti, Université Libre de Bruxelles – Cevipol
Jean-Michel De Waele, Université Libre de Bruxelles – Cevipol

Thomas Goffard, Université de Liège – Pragmapolis

Contact 

Thomas Goffard