In 2010, Greece suddenly ceased to be a stable and economically robust democracy at the core of Europe. The state went bankrupt and has since been sustained by loans, unemployment skyrocketed, the old party system collapsed, the once powerful PASOK almost evaporated, Nazi supporters entered Parliament, while another left-wing party quickly transitioned from the margins of politics to power, distributing new promises and hope. The Metapolitefsi is now in the past, but no one yet knows what the future will hold. So, what went wrong in Greece?

This book is the first comprehensive interpretation of the crisis that has plagued the country. It covers the entire historical period that began with the transition to democracy in 1974 and ended with the 2012 elections. The central argument of the book is that the Metapolitefsi was the arena where political liberalism and populism clashed in Greece, with the latter emerging as the ultimate victor. The analysis is based on an original conceptualization of the populist phenomenon, a detailed examination of the micro-mechanisms that contributed to its prevalence, and a wealth of primary empirical material.

If the future is indeed guided by an understanding of the past, and if populism is truly corrosive to liberal democracy and its institutions, this book has valuable conclusions to offer.