Hugo Drochon, "Elites and Democracy" (Princeton UP, 2026)
About this episode
Hugo Drochon discusses the relationship between elites and democracy, arguing that democracy is a struggle among competing elites rather than a true rule of the people.
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…
People in this episode
Guest: Hugo Drochon
Topics covered
- democracy
- elites
- political change
- social movements
- elite theories
- populism
Keywords
- democracy
- elites
- political institutions
- social movements
- populism
- elite theories
- political change
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Princeton University Press
Books & works: Elites and Democracy
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