More than the sum of our parts
What Volt represents is something that wants to be genuinely different. We must be clear, bold - and creative.
In my previous article, I talked about what Europe means to me, and why Volt has a key role to play in both upholding our shared values and renewing what Europe ought to be. Today, I’m going to reflect on what this means in a bit more detail.
I’m going to start by saying that I don’t pretend to have all the answers. As I wrote in my Electoral Programme, the answers must be arrived at together, through a process of genuinely strategic discussion and co-production.
What I do have are some observations, some reflections, and some proposals for how we may wish to plot a course through what lies ahead.
A different way of doing politics?
Volt is not the first political party to call itself a movement, or a movement seeking to achieve political power. There have been quite a few in recent decades in Europe. Although they were national and not pan-European, they all talked about wanting to do politics differently. They all described themselves as progressive. They all sought to be a broad church. They all achieved rapid growth and political success. And in the end, they all floundered.
The story of Podemos in Spain and the Five Star Movement (M5S) in Italy offer two very interesting - and sobering - case studies.
You could say that this is what happens when a well-intentioned, aspirational political movement positioning itself as an “alternative” option actually achieves its objective of obtaining political traction, and soon finds itself embroiled in the cut-and-thrust of party political dynamics, with all their subterfuge, compromises, horse trading and backstabbing, and the need to not just have lots of specific policy objectives but actually deliver them.
Clearly, there are many differences between Podemos and the M5S, and between them and Volt. But there are sufficient parallels for this to provide a cautionary tale for us.
We absolutely cannot afford to make the same mistakes as other “progressive” parties. We owe it to the people of Europe to get this right.
And then there is the wider political reality to contend with.
Much has been said about the “progressive coalition” which the man who is the poster boy for progressive politics in Europe, Pedro Sanchez Perez-Castejon, has been trying to build. This is no doubt welcome. But national leaders must always contend with difficult and complex national priorities before they can be effective on the world stage – and as a result, they may find their time in power short-lived.
It is often said that you first need to gain power before you can make change happen. But how many times have we seen “progressive” parties lose sight of what they stand for in the process of winning at the ballot box?
Political power is fickle – just ask Emmanuel Macron, whose country may soon swerve from EU stalwart to EU scourge.
And this underlines something that is very important, but often overlooked.
We must be very good at understanding the wider landscape we operate in.
In other words, what is going on around us in Europe – not just in politics, but in society?
Across the continent, we have not just rising levels of poverty but rising inequality. We have entrenched power dynamics which disenfranchise entire communities. And we are seeing the resurgence of a familiar and very ugly narrative which is shaping the public mood and poisoning public debate. We see it in the normalisation of the “great replacement” theory. We see it in the increasingly bare-faced racism of events with comically ironic names like “Unite the Kingdom.” We see it in communities where flags are weaponised to impose a far-right narrative of national identity, and used to intimidate anyone who isn’t white or, in this case, English.
Fascism is back in fashion. We ignore this at our peril.
Not just another progressive party
We must however also be pragmatic – which is, after all, one of Volt’s guiding principles.
One thing that seems clear is that despite a very impressive early growth trajectory, and various positive electoral results in certain countries, Volt is not going to achieve meaningful political success on its own – at least not anytime soon. And time is not something that we have bundles of, if we want to make a real impact.
The way forward, in this respect, appears to lie in forging strategic partnerships, or alliances, with like-minded parties and groups. As I’ve already said, the last thing we want to do is splinter the progressive vote and leave the door open for the right-wing and anti-democratic forces to walk through.
The nature of democratic elections, however, forces us to compete with other progressive groups for space, attention and votes. This creates an inherently confrontational environment which makes collaboration between different parties difficult unless there is already a firm agreement. Ideally, we would have that firm agreement in advance, and potentially run on the same ticket – but this will not always be possible, and is rarely straightforward.
One thing we certainly shouldn’t do is try to “out-progressive the progressives.” We can’t simply think, act and talk like just another progressive party, even if we’re pan-European and they’re not. We have to have a different story to tell that isn’t just about being an uber-progressive party.
If our main USP actually lies as much in being pan-European as it does in being progressive, then we have to be much better at articulating what being European actually means.
The Europe we need is one that is true to the core values that it was founded on. That walks the walk as well as talking the talk. That is steadfast in upholding democracy, human rights and the rule of law at home and in defending them abroad. That is capable of effectively tackling the big issues we all face, from climate change to increasing inequality to creeping authoritarianism. That is capable of defending its people from actual military aggression. That is not afraid to tackle difficult issues like immigration without reaching for populist solutions which normalise racism and prejudice. That is not in thrall to foreign powers, or the fossil fuel lobby. That genuinely pursues and acts in the best interests of European citizens, even when their own governments do not.
There are many ways that we can do this. Initiatives already exist that we can all get behind, and help turbocharge, from ECIs to initiatives like Eumans.eu.
But we must be more than just a big tent. We must also be the champions, and the custodians, of the ideals of a united Europe. As I wrote in my previous article, it is incumbent on us to recognise, value and celebrate what Europe means at heart, and to tell this story over and over again as we build a movement that is motivated by the desire to stand up for the core values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
…Isn’t that why we want a “United States of Europe,” after all?
Pushing for greater European integration isn’t just about making decision-making better or more democratic. At heart, it is a rejection of nationalism, jingoism and chauvinism. We see ourselves as citizens of Europe, not just because we were born here (and not everyone was), but because of what Europe means to us – and that identity is rooted in respect for human rights.
A human rights movement, focused on Europe, with political teeth
So what could such a movement look like? Take Amnesty International. Founded in 1961 as a letter-writing campaign to free prisoners of conscience, it is now the most well-known and biggest human rights movement in the world, campaigning on everything from drug policies to sexual and reproductive rights. There have been lots of victories in the past 65 years, but also plenty of setbacks, and Amnesty’s latest Annual Report makes for sombre reading. But Amnesty’s still there, with its millions of members worldwide, campaigning tirelessly for a better world; mobilising, supporting and providing a home for human rights activists all over the world.
What it arguably doesn’t have is direct political influence, because as a “non-political” organisation, Amnesty has always (and understandably) stayed well clear of party politics, even when the choice at the ballot box is pretty stark. And because human rights are so broad, it can be hard to achieve tangible impact within a specific geopolitical context.
Volt has no such constraints. It has a clear geopolitical focus – Europe – and it is an active political player at the local, national and international levels.
What we must do is see ourselves as fulfilling a role for the progressives of Europe that is analogous to the role that Amnesty plays for the human rights activists of the world, but with a clear political agenda.
Think of some of the more famous movements in recent years, such as Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, and many more. They didn’t succeed in eradicating racism, misogyny or homophobia. But that wasn’t the point. What they did do is put a clear stake in the ground, and provide a focal point for everyone who cares about certain fundamental values to come together and show the abusers that they will not let them have their way. Their success is not measured so much in terms of policy change as in their ability to energise millions of people to step forward, join forces and fight for something they truly believe in, deep within their bones. Whatever happens at the policy level, the fire they sparked will keep burning for a long, long time. Not as a twelve-point policy programme, but as an enduring statement of intent; an indelible vision of a better world.
I think the term “political movement” is both accurate and useful to describe Volt. But it also risks putting us in a box.
Perhaps we should try seeing ourselves as not just a progressive, pan-European political movement, but a human rights movement with Europe at its heart – and with political teeth.
Teeth is precisely what most “progressive” parties across Europe sadly lack – too meek, too insular, too risk-averse, too focused on the next election polls, and too scared to challenge falsehoods and prejudice, lest they upset angry voters complaining about immigration or the openly right-of-centre media that often dominates public discourse.
We don’t have to feel constrained by any of this. We don’t have to put ourselves in a box. Let’s be clear about what we stand for, and bold in pushing for it. People won’t come to us if they think we’re just another talking shop, or just another “progressive party.” They’ll come to us if they see what we stand for, if they share our vision and if they believe that together, we can really make it happen – not just when elections come around, but every single day.
Getting there: Inspire, Empower, Unite
In my Electoral Programme, I identify three key strategic drivers:
“Inspire,” as already discussed, is about harnessing the latent potential among all those who haven’t yet heard of Volt, and turn supporters into activists. There are many ways to exert political influence, and many of them don’t involve being in government. In most parts of Europe, the far right is doing a grand job of influencing politics simply by being ubiquitous and reinforcing a simple and seductive narrative, playing on people’s prejudice, frustrations and sense of insecurity. There’s no reason why we should let them continue to shape the national political discourse in this way. Plenty of people are prepared to stand up for a very different vision of society, and many are, but they have nowhere to turn to – they could turn to us.
This also relies on having a good enough understanding of who we’re actually trying to reach – our target audience. We’ve done a fair amount of work on this in Volt UK – come along to our GA session in the morning of Saturday, 13th of June, to find out more.
“Empower,” is about providing the space, the channels and the resources for our members and supporters to meaningfully engage with Volt at the national and international level, with actions and campaigns designed to achieve impact on key themes and in key policy areas at both the national and EU level. This includes but is not limited to supporting Volt members in getting elected.
This requires a combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches.
Top-down doesn’t mean controlling, much less micromanaging. It means providing support from the centre to all parts of our movement, so each of them has access to the knowledge, the resources and, where possible, the capacity that already exists within Volt Europa, or within different chapters, to achieve the impact that they’re looking for in their own countries. This is just as important for growing each chapter’s membership base, profile and contacts as it is for helping each chapter to gain political traction. We need to do much more of that.
We have to create the space for a genuinely co-productive approach.
The Volt Communities are a great way of networking and collaborating around key themes, as well as developing Volt policy and action. There is huge potential here for growing the movement in a meaningful way, but there also has to be enough clarity, consistency and alignment with an overall strategy.
Bottom-up means ensuring that everyone has a voice, and making it as easy as possible for anyone in any part of Volt to share, learn from and collaborate with other members of Volt who are going through a similar journey, or have things that can be valuable to the wider movement. This includes sharing key learnings from individual electoral campaigns, but also sharing resources. In the UK, we are currently looking for people to fill key roles to help us grow – these people could be found in other Volt chapters.
“Unite” means coming together around a simple but powerful vision, strategy and narrative, but avoiding the tendency to over-centralise, micro-manage or over-regulate which always comes with grand ambitions on a large scale. Getting this balance right is absolutely essential for Volt at its current stage of development.
The Touchstones are a great way to ensure cohesion around core messaging while enabling different parts of our movement to communicate effectively and respond meaningfully to the specific challenges they face.
We must also ensure that we have SMART objectives at national and international level that allow us to achieve both quick wins and big wins, thereby demonstrating our impact, our traction and our potential as more than “just” another progressive party.
Guiding principles
We won’t all agree on everything. We also can’t legislate for everything. There are many roads that can get us to our destination. We can plot a course, but we must be prepared to feel our way along, interpreting the signs along the way to find the best way forward.
The important thing is that we are all clear about what we’re ultimately trying to achieve. There will be differences. The key is to able to distinguish between differences that are fundamental, and differences which aren’t – and in some cases, differences which are useful, because they can stimulate creativity.
We will also find ourselves repeating a lot of things, to ourselves as well as to those we’re trying to reach. We will have a lot of internal conversations. The “big themes” will keep reappearing over time, in different guises. That’s fine – in fact that’s healthy. The key is to ensure that these discussions are focused, and productive.
We must resist the temptation to be too inward-looking. Rules and regulations are important. But they can quickly become a hindrance - and in the worst cases, an albatross.* We must be efficient, but also fleet of foot.
And let’s be creative. Let’s not tie ourselves down. There’s no one playbook that we have to follow. We can write our own.
And then, will be more than just the sum of our parts.
Next week, in my third and final article in the series, I am going to turn my attention to the more mundane, but essential, aspects of what Volt needs in order to actually be effective, impactful, accountable, resilient and sustainable as an organisation – and therefore what it needs from its Board.
*From Samuel Coleridge’s poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, referring to something that metaphorically hangs around your neck and weighs you down.