The People vs. the Elite

The people are taking back control!

Across the world, voters are choosing what the elite fears most: politicians grounded in reality – the kind who actually dare to make real changes.

The people are rising up against power.

It’s not the noise that matters – it’s the silence. The silent majority, who for years have stood by as passive spectators, are now voting differently. That’s the force shaking the foundations of the elite – not the loud ones, not the agitators, but ordinary people who’ve simply had enough.

It’s been simmering for years

I’ve seen it coming for a long time – long before I even started this blog. Not as an expert or political commentator, but just as a guy who pays more attention than most. I’ve watched the mood shift, slowly at first, and now at full speed. People are waking up when things stop making sense. Society’s nerves are now exposed. There’s more irritation, less patience, and a growing skepticism toward anything coming from the top.

And this isn’t just happening in one country – it’s global. You can feel it online, hear it in conversations, group chats, social media posts, even in traffic – people admit their fuse is shorter than ever. It feels like the world is tired in a new way. Not just exhausted, but quietly, firmly pushing back. People are starting to say: enough.

This isn’t about one issue or one country. It’s a mood that’s been building for years. And that’s what I want to capture. Not to explain the world in grand terms, but to put words to something many people feel but haven’t been able to express.

The people vs. the elite
It’s strange how we still talk about politics like it’s just left vs. right, red vs. blue, taxes vs. welfare. The map has shifted, but the language hasn’t. The real divide today isn’t ideological – it’s about who gets heard and who gets ignored. It’s the people, with their bills, worries, dreams, and frustrations, versus an elite still clinging to a worldview that died thirty years ago.

Look at what’s happening across country after country. Voters aren’t following the left-right script anymore. They vote for whoever they believe might actually do something – whoever seems willing to roll up their sleeves and isn’t part of the same tired circle that’s been talking itself in circles for decades. That’s what they call populism. But it’s not growing because people have gone extreme. It’s growing because power stopped listening.

I’m not saying everyone thinks alike. Plenty of people still find comfort in the system and believe today’s leadership is the best we can hope for. Fair enough. But when I talk about "the people" here, I mean the fast-growing group that no longer sees themselves in the version of reality the elite keeps pushing. It may not be everyone – but it’s more than enough to shift history. Political earthquakes don’t come from the satisfied. They come from the ignored.

Who is the elite – really?
When I say “the elite,” I’m not talking about a secret club pulling strings behind the curtain. I’m talking about the layer of people who sit so close to power that they shape politics and society without ever being elected to do so. It’s a class that floats between politics, media, bureaucracy, institutions, finance, and culture. They attend the same conferences, read the same reports, speak the same language, and know each other so well they start to believe they represent the entire country – and often far beyond it.

Some of them are high-level politicians. Some are advisors and bureaucrats who’ve outlasted government after government. Some are editors and commentators who decide which stories live and which ones die. Some work in international organizations like the UN, EU, NATO, WHO, or the WEF – or in powerful NGOs that influence policy without a single voter knowing their names. (By the way, NGOs are "non-governmental organizations," but in practice, many of them are heavily involved in political influence and funded by states and billionaires.) Others operate in finance, tech, and culture – moving money, norms, and narratives in ways few outside their bubble understand.

This isn’t conspiracy. It’s just a system of people with shared interests, shared worldviews, and shared power – and who, over time, have completely lost sight of how far removed they are from real life for most people. This is what many call the Deep State. Not because it’s hidden – but because it’s permanent. More on that later.

Let me be clear: this is not about scorning knowledge or education. We need skilled doctors, engineers, economists, and researchers more than ever. I’m not against competence – I’m against arrogance. The problem begins when “expertise” becomes a shield used to override common sense, and when experts stop advising and start acting like judges over how the rest of us should live.

The system is breaking down
The problem isn’t that the elite exists. The problem is that they govern like they no longer live in the same reality as the rest of us. They carry no personal risk when things go wrong. If a politician screws up, he doesn’t lose his home. If a bureaucrat makes a mess, he doesn’t lose his job. If an editor pushes a failed narrative, there are no real consequences. But for ordinary people, those choices have a cost – and it keeps getting steeper.

When power stays in the same hands for too long, criticism starts sounding like ignorance to them. They listen to each other, never the public. They govern by ideology and moralism, not by what actually works. They talk in symbols, while people are wondering how the hell to pay the electricity bill. They want to save the world, while people are just trying to survive their own week. And when something fails, they cover for each other. The networks matter more than the voters.

That’s why the system is coming apart. Not because the people have turned rebellious, but because the elite has lost touch with reality. Populism is the result. It’s not the enemy. It’s the reaction to a political class that no longer represents the people it claims to serve.

People want change
What’s surprised me the most these past years is how long people actually held on. They waited in line, adapted, paid more, waited longer, and kept hearing it was all temporary. They read the reports, followed the reforms, listened to the explanations – but real change never came. Meanwhile, the system got better and better at talking – about long-term goals, green transitions, and sustainability – while everyday life just got harder.

When things keep going downhill, year after year, no one’s impressed by some politician promising everything will be fine by 2040. People want change now. Not revolution. Not chaos. Just a clear break from what obviously isn’t working. That’s why they’re turning to politicians who don’t fit the mold – the ones who don’t smile the right way on TV, who didn’t come up through the party machine, who speak in a way that makes the elite uncomfortable. Not because people love their style – but because they’re done listening to those who line up to say the right things. They want someone who’ll actually do something.

When trust collapses
A lot of people misunderstand populism. They think it’s an ideology or a fixed set of values. In reality, populism is first and foremost a tool people reach for when the system stops working. That’s why populist leaders can come from both the left and the right – with wildly different agendas. What unites them isn’t their politics, but the fact that they represent a break from a system that failed.

Look at Argentina – voters went from socialist leadership to Milei, who’s ripping out the entire structure, roots and all. Look at the Netherlands, where a farmer’s party shook the system so hard it was forced to take notice. Look at Japan, where nationalist conservatives are gaining ground while younger generations search for a way out of a stagnant system. Portugal. The U.S. Italy. France. This isn’t about ideology. It’s about trust – or more accurately, the collapse of it.

Populism is the people slamming their fist on the table and saying: enough.

When revolt meets reality
When people finally revolt against the establishment, it’s not driven by ideology – it’s frustration. The urge to break something that’s been frozen in place for far too long. That’s what populism expresses – whether it comes from the left or the right. The direction depends on the country’s history, economy, and who’s in power when the wave hits. What matters isn’t where it comes from, but that it breaks with the status quo.

But revolt is one thing. Governing is another. Once the initial wave has crashed through, and the new politics start affecting everyday life, priorities shift. Suddenly, it’s less about protest and more about what actually works. Bills need paying. Jobs need protecting. Society needs to function. This is often the moment voters move away from symbolic gestures and toward policies that promise order, economic stability, and real results.

And that’s where the right often gains ground. Not because people suddenly become conservatives, but because stability, predictability, and responsibility start to matter more than tearing things down. It’s not a rule, not a law of nature – but a pattern we’ve seen again and again. Populism kicks down the door. But when the dust settles, people look for a politics that can hold together in real life.

A generational shift
The strongest force behind this uprising is the younger generation. Older folks scroll Facebook and online newspapers and think the youth have checked out – that they don’t care. But young people haven’t disengaged. They’ve just moved. They debate politics on completely different platforms, with different references, and without the filter of traditional media.

While the older generation bickers over symbolic issues, rant in comment sections, and repost yesterday’s headlines, the young are talking about power structures, economic pressure, AI, the housing crisis, the collapse of culture, and a system choking on its own arrogance.

This is a generational shift the elite never saw coming. They thought they still owned the language, the moral high ground, the narrative. But the young don’t give a damn what pronoun a politician uses. They’re the first modern generation that won’t be wealthier than their parents – unless something changes. They want to know why they can’t afford a home. Why they have to work themselves to death for things their parents took for granted. Why the system always protects itself first.

And they want a reckoning.

That’s what’s fueling this change. Not ideology. Not hate. But a generation that refuses to live as extras in a system they never signed up for.

When it boils over
What’s most revealing in recent years is just how visible the gap between the people and the elite has become. You don’t need polls or political analysis to see the frustration anymore – you hear it at work, in store lines, at dinner tables, in family gatherings, and all over social media. The temperature difference is unmistakable.

Ordinary people are worn out. They’re tired of decisions being made by politicians, bureaucrats, and institutions living far removed from their daily lives – while the consequences land squarely on their shoulders. When power, food, housing, and interest rates all get more expensive, it’s regular families who have to adjust, cut back, postpone. Meanwhile, those who made the decisions face zero personal risk – and tell everyone that things are “necessary,” “temporary,” or “under control.” Country after country, people are saying the same thing: we’ve had enough.

At the same time, media elites and political strategists treat the unrest like a messaging problem. They debate tone, narratives, and communications in studios and panels – while the reality people are reacting to stays exactly the same. The gap between lived experience and the political conversation has rarely been wider. And this isn’t just a local problem – it’s global. That gap is what’s driving populism forward. Not rage. Not madness. Just the sense that those in charge never have to live with the consequences of their own decisions.

A permanent power structure
Terms like “Deep State” stir up emotions fast – mostly because they sound dark and conspiratorial. But what I’m pointing to is far more ordinary – and at the same time, more permanent. It’s not a secret government or underground meetings.

It’s the structures that never change, no matter who wins an election. The bureaucrats who’ve been there for thirty years. The advisors who outlast every minister. The editors who decide what version of reality is “true.” The international organizations that shape domestic policy without ever being elected by anyone.

These are the people always at the table – whether they’re politicians, administrators, experts, or career officials.

They move in the same social and professional circles – at work and in private. They meet at conferences, sit on the same boards, show up in the same social feeds. Perspectives are shared, views confirmed, and over time, a common worldview and self-image emerges.

They’re not evil people. And this usually isn’t driven by cynicism. Most of it happens gradually – among people who’ve known each other for years and reinforced each other’s assumptions over time. When you live that close together – professionally and socially – it’s easy to start mistaking your view of the world for the view of the world.

And that’s exactly why this culture clashes with populism – because populism is people demanding their power back.

The Deep State isn’t secret. It’s just permanent.

Where I stand
Let me be crystal clear, so no one has to guess. I’m economically liberal, socially conservative, and lean populist. I believe in freedom, responsibility, and that the state should never grow larger than necessary. I believe ordinary people often understand more than experts give them credit for. And I believe the best politics is the kind that lets people live their lives with as little interference as possible.

That doesn’t mean I’m anti-state. It means I believe the balance between support and control is lost.

I’ve also realized I don’t fit into the old left–right model. I’m in a political space that doesn’t fully exist yet – but a lot of people recognize it, especially the young and those who are economically struggling. And I’m saying this openly, because everyone has bias. The difference is, I’m putting mine on the table. That way, you as a reader can better understand how I interpret this uprising against the elite. For me, it’s not about parties or colors. It’s about who actually listens – and who’s just pretending.

Reality, not revolution
When I look around – from Argentina to the Netherlands, Japan to the U.S., and across the Western world – it’s clear that what’s happening isn’t driven by hate or extremism. It’s driven by a world order that’s past its expiration date. People don’t want to burn society down. They want to tear down the distance.

They want leaders who actually function. Systems that actually work. Solutions that actually connect to the lives they’re living.

This uprising against the elite isn’t an ideological war. It’s a crisis of trust. The old model has lost its grip. And what you’re seeing now is people trying to take back control the only way they can: by voting out those who no longer represent them.

This isn’t the end of something. It’s the beginning of a global shift where politics becomes less theater, less posturing – and more reality.

And maybe – once the dust settles – we’ll finally get a political culture that’s about fixing problems instead of faking solutions.

At the end of the day, it’s really quite simple:
People want politics that works for them.

Further Reading
If you want a more technical and in-depth explanation of what I mean by the term Deep State, you’ll find a detailed breakdown in an earlier piece: Deep State.

You can also check out my previous post A Tsunami from the Right, where I take a closer look at why the political right is gaining ground – and how this ties directly into the wave of populism explored in this article.