One core issue of radical democratic theory is the critique of consensus politics. The assumption is that the concept of consensus politics, in turning a blind eye towards conflictual positions, promotes depolitisation and de-democratisation. This led many radical thinkers to endorse alternative concepts of the political that are more in line with the dissensual or rather agonistic nature of politics. However, in formulating a concept diametrically opposed, leaving the cause for the critique untouched, radical political thought runs the risk to reproduce the perceived failures. What is missing in both approaches is an analytical inclusion of asymmetrical power relations. For this reason, while the critique on consensual politics is adequate, dissensual politics as a counter-concept remains yet unconvincing. Therefore, a serious engagement with the mechanisms of consent and their relation to existing power dynamics can offer a necessary supplement for radical democratic conceptions of the political.
