We seek to disentangle the process through which some democratic polities ‘escape’ from neoliberal rule while others do not. We understand neoliberalism as the resulting equilibrium provoked by the restoration of class power that undermined the pro-labour policies of the post-war period. Why do some democracies enter a route of political experimentation that challenges the status quo while others remain ‘trapped’ in an orthodox neoliberal settlement? Our argument is that for a democratic polity to initiate a transition from neoliberal rule, there needs to be a crisis of neoliberal rule, a compelling alternative willing to contend for state power in national elections, and a reliable democratic settlement that allows the victory of the challenger – that is, the alternative – over the neoliberal rulers. This model will be discussed by examining the following three cases: Argentina, Greece, and Mexico.

我们试图解开一些民主政体“逃离”新自由主义统治而其他政体却没有的过程。我们将新自由主义理解为由破坏战后时期的亲劳工政策的阶级权力的恢复所引发的平衡。为什么一些民主国家会进入一条挑战现状的政治实验之路，而另一些则仍然“被困”在正统的新自由主义解决方案中？我们的论点是，要使民主政体开始从新自由主义统治过渡，就需要有新自由主义统治的危机、愿意在全国选举中争夺国家权力的令人信服的替代方案，以及允许政府获胜的可靠民主解决方案。新自由主义统治者的挑战者——即替代方案。