ABSTRACT
Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe have made significant contributions to the theorization and justification of left-wing populism. While their post-Marxist model of left-wing populism has been widely criticized—such as for its lack of class-theoretical perspectives and its anti-pluralist tendencies—its relation to conspiracist worldviews has not been systematically analyzed and evaluated so far. Drawing on the critical-materialist social psychology and ideology critique developed by the early Institute of Social Research, this chapter argues that while Laclau and Mouffe do not propagate full-fledged conspiracy theories, key elements of their theoretical approach overlap with the ideological structure of conspiracist worldviews. Against this background, the chapter examines an extended conversation between Mouffe and Íñigo Errejón (then chief strategist of the Spanish left-wing populist party Podemos), which provides further insights into the ambivalent relationship between post-Marxism, left-wing populism, and conspiracist worldviews.
