SWP posters and leaflets at an election rally at George Square, Glasgow

The role of debate in democratic centralism

David Hollings argues against the idea that democratic centralism can be “reduced to a three stage formula of debate, vote and unity of action”. 

This is in fact a weaker form of democratic centralism which raises the vote from a mechanism for deciding which course of action to pursue to a mechanism to decide which course of action is best… As the vote can only decide a course of action and not the correct answer, there must be attempts by those on both sides of the question to be continually engaging with the arguments and re-evaluating their position on the matter.

► Read “The role of debate in a democratic centralist organisation” here.

Note: This piece was published before rs21 was established as an independent organisation in January 2014. rs21 was founded by a group of people who had been in the opposition within the SWP and who left in response to its persistent mishandling of rape and sexual harassment allegations against a leading member.