Socio-Partisan Activism: Democratizing Political Representation
No. 125 (2026-01-14)Author(s)
-
Debora Rezende de AlmeidaUniversidade de Brasília (Brazil)ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4752-8892
Abstract
Objective/context: The article develops the concept of socio-partisan activism to explain how activists simultaneously engage with both political parties and social movements through Brazil’s collective mandates, examining the conditions under which this dual engagement can democratize political representation. Methodology: A qualitative multiple-case study analyzes 33 collective mandates—29 elected in Brazil’s 2020 municipal elections, two municipal precursors from 2016, and two state-level mandates from 2018—drawing on 64 semi-structured interviews with 74 individuals, extensive documentary research, and inductive-deductive content analysis using Atlas.ti. Conclusions: Multiple affiliations between movements and parties are widespread across collective mandates, enabling the transfer of participatory repertoires and activist knowledge into legislative practice through horizontal office structures, expanded political councils, and sustained engagement in committees, hearings, territories, and protests both inside and outside institutions. Conflicts stem from party organizational constraints and legal ambiguity surrounding collective candidacies, legislatures’ vertical and weakly deliberative routines, factional disputes within the Workers’ Party (PT) and the Socialism and Freedom Party (PSOL), and uneven internal alignment—pressures that can fragment collectives even as they broaden inclusion of historically excluded groups. Three conditions shape both success and conflict: party and legislative organization, shared affinities and programmatic alignment among co-councilors, and micro-relations within parties. Together, these factors condition how socio-partisan activism can recalibrate representation. Originality: By shifting the analytical focus from organizations to activists, the article introduces a generalizable framework—socio-partisan activism—that expands party–movement research beyond episodic alliances to everyday dual engagement, mapping how collective mandates adapt movement repertoires to representative institutions while reinforcing civil-society networks and proposing a comprehensive view of the universe of elected collective mandates at the time of study.
References
Abers, Rebecca. 2021. “Institutions, Networks and Activism inside the State: Women’s Health and Environmental Policy in Brazil.” Critical Policy Studies 15 (3): 330–349. https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2020.1860782
Abers, Rebecca, and Marisa von Bülow. 2011. “Movimentos sociais na teoria e na prática: Como estudar o ativismo através da fronteira entre Estado e sociedade?” Sociologias 13 (28): 52–84. https://doi.org/10.1590/51517-45222011000300004
Abers, Rebecca Neaera, Debora Rezende de Almeida, and Marisa von Bülow. 2022. “Movements and Parties: Beyond Contentious Performances.” PArtecipazione e COnflitto 15 (n.3): 970–76. https://doi.org/10.1285/i20356609v15i3p970
Almeida, Debora Rezende de. 2023. “Representação como participação: Os mandatos coletivos no Brasil.” Revista de Sociologia e Politica 31: 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-98732331e024
Almeida, Debora Rezende de. 2024. “Candidaturas coletivas: Uma nova forma de interação entre movimentos sociais e partidos políticos.” Dados - Revista de Ciências Sociais 67 (2): 1–41. https://doi.org/10.1590/dados.2024.67.2.320
Almeida, Debora Rezende de, and Lígia Lüchmann. 2022. “Movimentos sociais e representação eleitoral: O fenômeno das candidaturas e dos mandatos coletivos.” In Participação e ativismos: Entre retrocessos e resistências, edited by Luciana Tatagiba, Debora R. de Almeida, Adrian Gurza Lavalle, and Marcelo Kunrath Silva, 127–156. Porto Alegre: Zouk.
Alvarez, Sonia E. 1990. Engendering Democracy in Brazil: Women’s Movements in Transition Politics. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv1fkgddt
Andrews, Kenneth T. 1997. “The Impacts of Social Movements on the Political Process: The Civil Rights Movement and Black Electoral Politics in Mississippi.” American Sociological Review 62 (5): 800–819. https://doi.org/10.2307/2657361
Anria, Santiago. 2019. When Movements Become Parties: The Bolivian MAS in Comparative Perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Anria, Santiago. 2022. “Movements, Parties, and Hybrids.” Partecipazione e Conflitto 15 (3): 988–992. https://doi.org/10.1285/i20356609v15i3p988
Banaszak, Lee Ann. 2010. The Women’s Movement Inside and Outside the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Bookchin, Debbie, and Ada Colau, eds. 2019. Fearless Cities: A Guide to the Global Municipalist Movement. Oxford: New Internationalist Publications Ltd.
Caiani, Manuela, and Ondřej Císař. 2019. Radical Right Movement Parties in Europe. New York: Routledge.
Campos, Bárbara Lopes, and Marlise Matos. 2023. “Juntas em um único número na urna? Uma análise das experiências de mandato coletivo no Brasil (2016-2020).” Revista Brasileira de Ciência Política 40: 1–37. https://doi.org/10.1590/0103-3352.2023.40.263122
Christel, Lucas G., and Ricardo A. Gutiérrez. 2017. “Making Rights Come Alive: Environmental Rights and Modes of Participation in Argentina.” Journal of Environment and Development 26 (3): 322–347. https://doi.org/10.1177/1070496517701248
Christel, Lucas G., and Ricardo A. Gutiérrez. 2023. “Environmental Mobilization in Latin America Beyond the Lenses of Social Movements.” In The Oxford Handbook of Latin American Social Movements, edited by Federico M Rossi, 439–454. Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190870362.013.22
Cowell-Meyers, Kimberly B. 2014. “The Social Movement as Political Party: The Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition and the Campaign for Inclusion.” Perspectives on Politics 12 (1): 61–79. https://doi.org/10.1017/S153759271300371X
Della Porta, Donatella, Joseba Fernández, Hara Kouki, and Lorenzo Mosca. 2017. Movement Parties against Austerity. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Diani, Mario. 2015. The Cement of Civil Society: Studying Networks in Localities. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781316163733
Drisko, James, and Tina Maschi. 2016. Content Analysis. New York: Oxford University Press.
Eisenstein, Hester. 1996. Inside Agitators: Australian Femocrats and the State. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Elo, Satu, Maria Kääriäinen, Outi Kanste, Tarja Pölkki, Kati Utriainen, and Helvi Kyngäs. 2014. “Qualitative Content Analysis: A Focus on Trustworthiness.” SAGE Open 4 (1): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244014522633
Feitosa, Cleyton. 2022. “Movimento LGBTI+ e partidos políticos: A institucionalização da diversidade sexual e de gênero no Brasil.” Universidade de Brasília.
Fillieule, Olivier. 2010. “Some Elements of an Interactionist Approach to Political Disengagement.” Social Movement Studies 9 (1): 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/14742830903442436
Garretón, Manuel Antonio. 2002. “La transformación de la acción colectiva en América Latina.” Revista de la CEPAL 76: 7–24. https://hdl.handle.net/11362/10797
Gerbaudo, Paolo. 2019. The Digital Party: Political Organisation and Online Democracy. London: Pluto Press. https://doi.org/10.1177/0268580919870741
Gold, Tomás, and Alejandro M. Peña. 2019. “Protests, Signaling, and Elections: Conceptualizing Opposition-Movement Interactions during Argentina’s Anti-Government Protests (2012-2013).” Social Movement Studies 18 (3): 324–345. https://doi.org/10.1080/14742837.2018.1555751
Gurza Lavalle, Adrian, Euzeneia Carlos, Monika Dowbor, and José Szwako, eds. 2018. Movimentos sociais e institucionalização: Políticas sociais, raça e gênero no Brasil Pós-Transição. Rio de Janeiro: EDUERJ.
Heaney, Michael T., and Fabio Rojas. 2015. Party in the Street: The Antiwar Movement and the Democratic Party after 9/11. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1057/iga.2015.13
Hellman, John. 1992. “The Study of New Social Movements in Latin America and the Question of Autonomy.” In The Making of Social Movements in Latin America: Identity, Strategy and Democracy, edited by Arturo Escobar and Sonia E. Alvarez, 52–61. New York: Routledge.
Hutter, Swen, Hanspeter Kriesi, and Jasmine Lorenzini. 2018. “Social Movements in Interaction with Political Parties.” In The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Social Movements, edited by David A. Snow, Sarah A. Soule, Hanspeter Kriesi, and Holly J. McCammon, 322–337. New Jersey: Wiley Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119168577.ch18
Jenkins, J. Craig, and Bert Klandermans. 1995. The Politics of Social Protest: Comparative Perspectives on States and Social Movements, edited by J. Craig Jenkins and Bert Klandermans. Developments in German Politics 4. Minneapolis: The University of Minnesota Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-137-30164-2_7
Joyce, Mary C. 2014. “Activism Success: A Concept Explication.” University of Washington.
Kitschelt, Herbert. 1989. The Logics of Party Formation: Ecological Politics in Belgium and West Germany. The Logics of Party Formation. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press. https://doi.org/10.7591/9781501745959
Kitschelt, Herbert P. 2006. “Movements Parties.” In Handbook of Party Politics, edited by Richard Katz and William Crotti, 278–290. London and New Delhi: Thousand Oak; SAGE Publications.
Mazur, Amy G., and Dorothy McBride. 2023. “Do Feminist Insiders Matter? Progress in Conceptualization and Comparative Theory-Building.” In Handbook of Feminist Governance, edited by Marian Sawer, Lee Ann Banaszak, Jacqui True, and Johanna Kantola, 63–75. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing.
McAdam, Doug, and Sidney Tarrow. 2010. “Ballots and Barricades: On the Reciprocal Relationship between Elections and Social Movements.” Perspectives on Politics 8 (2): 529–542. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592710001234
McAdam, Doug, Sidney Tarrow, and Charles Tilly. 2001. Dynamics of Contention. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
McBride, D, and A. D Mazur. 2010. The Politics of State Feminism Innovation in Comparative Research. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Mérida, Juan, and Imanol Tellería. 2021. “¿Una nueva forma de hacer política? Modos de gobernanza participativa y Ayuntamientos del Cambio en España (2015-2019).” Gestión y Análisis de Políticas Públicas 26: 92–110. https://doi.org/10.24965/gapp.i26.10841
Mische, Ann. 1997. “De estudantes a cidadãos redes de jovens e participação política.” Revista Brasileira de Educação 5: 134–150.
Mische, Ann. 2009. Partisan Publics: Communication and Contention across Brazilian Youth Activist Networks. Princeton: Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400830817
Oliveira, Marília. 2021. “Movimentos sociais em interação com partidos políticos: A experiência do movimento ambientalista com o Partido dos Trabalhadores.” Opinião Pública 27 (2): 585–622. https://doi.org/10.1590/1807-01912021272585
Piccio, Daniela R. 2016. “The Impact of Social Movements on Political Parties.” In The Consequences of Social Movements, edited by Lorenzo Bosi, Marco Giugni, and Katrin Uba, 263–284. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Pirro, Andrea L.P., and Pietro Castelli Gattinara. 2018. “Movement Parties of the Far Right: The Organization and Strategies of Nativist Collective Actors.” Mobilization 23 (3): 367–383. https://doi.org/10.17813/1086-671X-23-3-367
Piven, Frances Fox, and Richard Cloward. 1977. Poor People’s Movements: Why They Succeed, How They Fail. Pantheon. New York: Vintage Books.
Poguntke, Thomas. 2002. “Green Parties in National Governments: From Protest to Acquiescence?” Environmental Politics 11 (1): 133–145. https://doi.org/10.1080/714000585
Rezende, Daniela, Rayza Sarmento, and Louise Tavares. 2020. “Mulheres nos partidos políticos brasileiros: Uma análise de estatutos partidários e sítios eletrônicos.” Debates 14 (3): 43–69. https://doi.org/10.22456/1982-5269.108752
Roberts, Kenneth M. 1995. “Neoliberalism and the Transformation of Populism: The Peruvian Case.” World Politics 48 (1): 82–116. https://doi.org/10.1353/wp.1995.0004
Rodrigues, Cristiano, and Viviane Gonçalves Freitas. 2021. “Ativismo feminista negro no Brasil: Do movimento de mulheres negras ao feminismo interseccional.” Revista Brasileira de Ciência Política 34: 1–54. https://doi.org/10.1590/0103-3352.2021.34.238917
Sawer, Marian, Lee Ann Banaszak, Jacqui True, and Johanna Kantola. 2023. “Introduction to the Handbook of Feminist Governance.” In Handbook of Feminist Governance, edited by Marian Sawer, Lee Ann Banaszak, Jacqui True, and Johanna Kantola, 1–15. Cheltenham, UK, Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Sawicki, Frédéric, and Johanna Siméant. 2011. “Inventário da sociologia do engajamento militante: Nota crítica sobre algumas tendências recentes dos trabalhos franceses.” Sociologias 13 (28): 200–255. https://doi.org/10.1590/s1517-45222011000300008
Schwartz, Mildred A. 2010. “Interactions between Social Movements and Us Political Parties.” Party Politics 16 (5): 587–607. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354068809342989
Secchi, Leonardo, Ricardo Alves Cavalheiro, and Camila Vichroski Baumgarten. 2024. “Collective Mandates in Brazil: Democratic Innovations to Boost Participation in Legislature Collective Mandates in Brazil.” Representation 60 (1): 135–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/00344893.2023.2192722
Silva, Marcelo Kunrath, and Gerson de Lima Oliveira. 2011. “A face oculta(da) dos movimentos sociais: Trânsito institucional e intersecção estado-movimento - Uma Análise do movimento de economia solidária no Rio Grande do Sul.” Sociologias 13: 86–124. https://doi.org/10.1590/S1517-45222011000300005
Tablo, Nicolás, Pablo Almarza, Camila Cruz, Janine Soto, and Guillermo Aguilera. 2018. “Liderazgo autonómico en el Movimiento Valparaíso Ciudadano.” Revista de Estudios Políticos y Estratégicos 6 (2): 58–75. https://revistaepe.utem.cl/?p=859
Tarrow, Sidney. 2021. Movements and Parties: Critical Connections in American Political Development. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Tatagiba, Luciana, and Ana Cláudia Teixeira, eds. 2021. Movimentos sociais e políticas públicas. São Paulo: UNESP.
Valdivia Rivera, Soledad. 2024. “Vínculos entre movimientos sociales y partidos políticos, y su impacto electoral en el contexto del estallido social en Bolivia, 2019-2020.” Desafíos 36 (1): 1–29. 60. https://doi.org/10.12804/revistas.urosario.edu.co/desafios/a.13220
van Cott, Donna Lee. 2005. From Movements to Parties in Latin America: The Evolution of Ethnic Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
von Bülow, Marisa, Danniel Gobbi, and Tayrine Dias. 2022. “O conceito de ativismo digital: Uma Agenda para além das fronteiras entre sistema político e sociedade civil.” In Participação e ativismos: Entre retrocessos e resistências, edited by Luciana Tatagiba, Debora Rezende de Almeida, Adrian Gurza Lavalle, and Marcelo Kunrath Silva, 307–326. Porto Alegre: Zouk.
Welp, Yanina. 2022. The Will of the People: Populism and Citizen Participation in Latin America. Berlin and Boston: De Gruyter.
Zaremberg, Gisela, and Debora Rezende de Almeida. 2022. Feminisms in Latin America: Pro-Choice Nested Networks in Mexico and Brazil. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Zaremberg, Gisela, and Debora Rezende de Almeida. 2025. “Beyond Electoral Rules: Women Political Rights in Mexico and Brazil since Democratic Transitions.” Social Politics 32 (1): 80–104. https://doi.org/10.1093/sp/jxaf005
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Debora Rezende de Almeida
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.