Left-wing populism, also called social populism, is a political ideology that combines left-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric often includes elements of anti-elitism, opposition to the Establishment, and speaking for the "common people". Recurring themes for left-wing populists include economic democracy, social justice, and scepticism of globalization. Socialist theory plays a lesser role than in traditional left-wing ideologies.
An Occupy Wall Street sign with the 99% slogan, a left-wing populist movement.
Andrés Manuel López Obrador in 2018
Bernie Sanders in 2020
Tarō Yamamoto in 2020. He is mentioned as a (left-wing) liberal-populist.
Populism is a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group with "the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed in the late 19th century and has been applied to various politicians, parties and movements since that time, often as a pejorative. Within political science and other social sciences, several different definitions of populism have been employed, with some scholars proposing that the term be rejected altogether.
The Bolivian government of left-wing populist Evo Morales and his Movement for Socialism has been described as the "prototypical case" of ethnopopulism.
Protesters from the Tea Party movement, a right-wing populist formation in the United States
The Argentine political theorist Ernesto Laclau developed his own definition of populism. He regarded it as a positive force for emancipatory change in society.
A 2012 rally by members of the left-wing populist United Socialist Party of Venezuela in Maracaibo
