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Hugo Drochon, "Elites and Democracy" (Princeton UP, 2026)
A central paradox of democracies is that they are always ruled by
elites. What can democracy mean in this context? Today, it is often said
that a populist revolt against elites is driving democratic politics
throughout the West. But in Elites and Democracy (Princeton
University Press, 2026), Hugo Drochon argues that democracy is more
accurately and usefully understood as a perpetual struggle among
competing elites—between rising elites and ruling elites. Real political
change comes from the interaction between social movements and elite
political institutions such as parties. But, although true democracy—the
rule of the people—may never be achieved, striving towards it can bring
about worthwhile democratic results.
At the turn of the twentieth century, Gaetano Mosca, Vilfredo Pareto,
and Robert Michels put forward “elite” theories of democracy and gave us
terms such as the “ruling class” and “elites” itself. Drawing on their
work and tracing the history of democratic thought through figures such
as Joseph Schumpeter, Robert Dahl, C. Wright Mills, and Raymond Aron, Elites and Democracy reveals that this fundamentally elitist basis of democracy—democracy understood as competition between elites—was there all along. The challenge is to think it anew.
Moving away from procedural or principled conceptions of democracy, Elites and Democracy develops a dynamic theory of democracy, one grounded in movement. With current politics defined by a populist backlash against elites, dynamic democracy offers the tools we urgently need to understand our contemporary predicament and to act upon it.
Hugo Drochon is an Associate Professor in Political Theory at the
University of Nottingham. He is a historian of modern political thought,
with interests in Nietzsche's politics.
Morteza Hajizadeh is a Ph.D. graduate in English from the University of Auckland in New Zealand. His research interests are Cultural Studies; Critical Theory; Environmental History; Medieval (Intellectual) History; Gothic Studies; 18th- and 19th-century British Literature.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/intellectual-history
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By New Books Network
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A central paradox of democracies is that they are always ruled by
elites. What can democracy mean in this context? Today, it is often said
that a populist revolt against elites is driving democratic politics
throughout the West. But in Elites and Democracy (Princeton
University Press, 2026), Hugo Drochon argues that democracy is more
accurately and usefully understood as a perpetual struggle among
competing elites—between rising elites and ruling elites. Real political
change comes from the interaction between social movements and elite
political institutions such as parties. But, although true democracy—the
rule of the people—may never be achieved, striving towards it can bring
about worthwhile democratic results.
At the turn of the twentieth century, Gaetano Mosca, Vilfredo Pareto,
and Robert Michels put forward “elite” theories of democracy and gave us
terms such as the “ruling class” and “elites” itself. Drawing on their
work and tracing the history of democratic thought through figures such
as Joseph Schumpeter, Robert Dahl, C. Wright Mills, and Raymond Aron, Elites and Democracy reveals that this fundamentally elitist basis of democracy—democracy understood as competition between elites—was there all along. The challenge is to think it anew.
Moving away from procedural or principled conceptions of democracy, Elites and Democracy develops a dynamic theory of democracy, one grounded in movement. With current politics defined by a populist backlash against elites, dynamic democracy offers the tools we urgently need to understand our contemporary predicament and to act upon it.
Hugo Drochon is an Associate Professor in Political Theory at the
University of Nottingham. He is a historian of modern political thought,
with interests in Nietzsche's politics.
Morteza Hajizadeh is a Ph.D. graduate in English from the University of Auckland in New Zealand. His research interests are Cultural Studies; Critical Theory; Environmental History; Medieval (Intellectual) History; Gothic Studies; 18th- and 19th-century British Literature.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/intellectual-history
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