This article explores the potential of radical social movements in Greece which have emerged post-2008 to address the perceived democratic deficit that characterizes institutional politics at both the national and regional (EU) levels. Various empirical and ethnographic approaches have examined protest cultures, foregrounding their self-organization, spontaneity, flexibility and absence of hierarchy as characteristics which have allowed them to mobilize such impressive amounts of people. This paper critically argues, however, that the organisational form of contemporary mass social movements and their reluctance to engage with state power has actually inhibited their potential and prevented them from realizing their political goals. The case of Syriza, a Greek radical leftist political party is examined, which intends to contest Troika-mandated austerity in Greece by mediating the transformative potential of the street and the square via electoral politics in order to effect durable socio-political change.