Coulter, Colin and Reynolds, John (2020) Good times for a change? Ireland since the general election. Soundings: A journal of politics and culture, 75. pp. 66-81. ISSN 0038-1861

Preview

Download (278kB) | Preview

Abstract

The 2020 Irish general election result was widely characterised as both a ‘shock’ and as a victory for the left. These claims are true, but only partially so. The recent turn to the left was not a sudden development, but rather an expression of how the Irish political landscape has slowly but fundamentally changed since the global financial crash. And while the electorate certainly appear more open to left-wing politics, the principal beneficiaries in terms of the popular vote (Sinn Féin) and access to power (Greens) were parties with only questionable left-wing credentials. Before the new government could even be formed, the advent of the global health pandemic transformed the political terrain once more, with the two traditionally dominant centre-right parties agreeing to share power for the first time. While the restoration of the political status quo has exposed the limitations of Sinn Féin's left-nationalism, we suggest that the socialist left has an opportunity to revive and expand, and should have an important role to play in the economic and social contestations that lie ahead under the latest iteration of neoliberal governmentality.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is the preprint version of the published article. Cite this version as: Coulter, Colin and Reynolds, John, Good Times for a Change? Ireland since the General Election (July 2020). 75 Soundings 66-81 (2020), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3710492. The published article is available at: Coulter, Colin and John Reynolds. "Good times for a change? Ireland since the general election." Soundings: A journal of politics and culture, vol. 75, 2020, p. 66-81. Project MUSE muse.jhu.edu/article/764263.
Keywords:	Ireland; general election 2020; Sinn Féin; the Greens; Fine Gael; Fianna Fáil; socialist left; austerity;, coronavirus crisis; pandemic; neoliberalism;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Law Faculty of Social Sciences > Sociology
Item ID:	14920
Depositing User:	Colin Coulter
Date Deposited:	13 Oct 2021 13:50
Journal or Publication Title:	Soundings: A journal of politics and culture
Publisher:	Penn State University Press
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Organisation Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

Repository Staff Only(login required)

Item control page

Downloads

Origin of downloads