The concept of plutocracy is used to indicate to that system of government in which there is a predominance of the rich, that is, those who direct the political destinies of a nation are individuals with a lot of money and those who are owners of the greatest wealth that exists.
System of government in which the owners of power are also the owners of money and rule for the benefit of themselves and their class
A salient feature is that they rule for the absolute benefit of themselves and their class.
For example, in this type of regime, wealth will be the absolute basis of power.
The way of accessing power may be variable depending on the situation, the time and the region, there are even plutocracies both in democracies and dictatorships, that is, there is no predisposition based on the way in which the power is exercised. However, in the case of plutocracies that emerge in an a priori democratic system, democracy will not be real, much less because the owners of power will have to limit the participation of those who do not belong to their class, either to through fraud or other tricks.
In the 19th and 20th centuries it was common that only those people who belonged to the wealthiest classes of society were allowed to vote and of course the rest were not allowed this right.
In this way they ensured that those who held power were from the ruling class.
On the other hand, it is common for plutocracies to prosper in those democracies in which the government is permeable to the pressure of money exerted by the upper classes and of course with it they end up twisting all decisions in their favor.
Economic groups solve political campaigns in exchange for economic favors once the candidates come to power
It is common for large companies to put the force of their money in favor of a candidate who accepts these rules of the game.
In exchange for helping them pay for political campaigns that are often very expensive, they offer absolute commitment to promote policies and pass laws that benefit them.
So the current rulers end up accepting the conditions of the plutocracy and end up being part of it.
We only have to review the campaign contributions of many politicians and political groups today to verify this practice of delivering funds to finance campaigns, in exchange, once power is gained, for political favors.
Many tend to link the plutocracy as a variant of the oligarchy.
It is worth mentioning that the oligarchy is that form of government in which power is held by very few people.
Surely this association arises because historically the oligarchs have owned vast tracts of land and also large sums of money that have allowed them to impose themselves politically as the holders of the ticket.
Since the most remote times this situation has been a common scenario in various communities, societies and cultures, even today, much of the time, bulky wallets have the power to twist decisions and obtain certain benefits, something that for This course is absolutely denied to those who do not have material resources.
A frequent situation these days and that we can well relate to the plutocracy is the not at all transparent funding that some politicians and political groups hold.
Many companies or businessmen usually make large amounts of money available to campaign candidates to finance their electoral path, but of course, in exchange they are asked to collaborate in the enactment of some laws that are beneficial to them if they reach power. for your business, among others.
On the other hand, it is also a reality of this time that some less developed nations depend economically on others that are more powerful in terms of money and then in exchange for the profits that they promise they end up submitting to their designs and support them in their proposals.
On the other hand, the word is used to express that In a country, region, territory, among others, there is a clear predominance of the wealthy class, that is, the class that has the most material resources.
We must say that the denomination of plutocracy responds to the term Pluto, which in ancient Greek mythology was used to designate the god of wealth: Pluto.
