How do crises reveal the contradictions of liberal democracy and why does the left present itself as the failed last guardian of liberal capitalism? Capitalism, Crisis and Democracy takes you inside Portugal’s political upheaval to address these urgent questions. Drawing on democratic theory, Marxist political economy, and discourse analysis, the book shows how austerity hollowed out democratic legitimacy and created space for the far right. Through interviews with policymakers, trade unionists, and protesters, it reveals how competing democratic visions clashed during crisis. This book challenges depoliticised models of democracy and offers a conflict-centred alternative grounded in social struggle.