Alexis Tsipras: Formation of New Political Elites in Greece During the Financial and Economic Crisis

Abstract

The author explores the evolution of the political views of A. Tsipras, the leader of the SYRIZA party, during the financial and economic crisis of the 2010s. The crisis led to drastic changes in Greek politics, concluding with the dissolution of the two-party system that had existed for almost four decades. SYRIZA started gaining immense popular support during the protests against the existing political elites which brought the country to the brink of bankruptcy, and against the neoliberal methods of the “troika” of creditors (the European Commission, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund), which demanded strict austerity measures. Tsipras' charisma, and his skillful use of populist rhetoric, played a significant part in the party's emergence as an important political actor. Initially a minor radical-left party, by 2012 SYRIZA had emerged as the major opposition party, and by 2015 it was in power. However, Tsipras was unable to fulfill one of his main promises to the electorate - to revise the hard terms of the agreement between the Greek government and the “troika”.