De-federalization” and Presidentialization: Intra-organizational Conflicts over the Institutional Shape of Syriza

Following its transformation into a governing party in the early 2010s, Syriza changed from a fluid and unstable political alliance to a firm, coherent, and presidential political party. The failure of Alexis Tsipras's government to cancel the country's debt and to avoid the implementation of severe fiscal adjustment policies and privatizations by European lenders during the first half of 2015 did not prevent the party from staying in power for more than four years. Its defeat in the 2019 legislative elections did not lead to its dissolution or organizational degeneration, as was the case with Pasok, nor did it question the leadership skills of its president. The party’s ability to absorb institutional crises has been impressive, particularly given that it faced significant coherence issues before re-entering the political field as a government party: it operated on the basis of federal organizational principles during the first decade of its existence, composed of a series of Left parties, organizations and groups that were hesitant to invest in its institutional consolidation. Our paper aims to explore how the transformation of Syriza into a governing party impacted its internal institutional order, resulting in a consistent and resilient political formation. Our analysis will be divided into two parts that illustrate the key axes of Syriza's organizational change. Firstly, we will focus on its institutionalization process, highlighting the shift in the distribution of power structures among its internal collective agents. The second part will focus on the party's "presidentialization," demonstrating how Alexis Tsipras gradually gained autonomy from the party's instances and organized groups. By highlighting the relationship of domination among Coalition's various units, our goal is to provide an accurate representation of the institutional transformations that occur within a political organization as it transitions into a governing party.