ECAS Highlight of the Week – Four Types of Populism Across Europe
The topic of populism is increasingly present in media coverage and academic discussions – a response that reflects its rapid rise throughout Europe. And though still largely ambiguous as a concept, its impact is very real. At present there are many examples of how powerful it can be in influencing the political course in different countries.
Given ECAS’s line of work, addressing this phenomenon is not only inevitable, but also necessary. ‘Understanding populism’ is one of the three pillars of our European Democracy focus area and we carry out various in-depth work to investigate how it affects our societies. One such project is the Democratic Efficacy and the Varieties of Populism in Europe (DEMOS), implemented by a consortium of 15 institutions. Within its framework, partners recently released new research identifying four types of populism in political parties and movements in Europe – radical left-wing, right-wing, illiberal and anti-establishment.
The study, which investigated 17 populist parties and movements, fills a void in research on comparative party populism and offers a unique insight into their social, political, and historical developments. According to the findings, except for the French Front National/Rassemblement National (FN/RN) and the Hungarian Fidesz parties, most populist parties are young: they have been established in the 21st century. Several parties developed a populist appeal over time. An example is the Alternative for Germany, which started as a single-issue party until it developed a strong anti-establishment appeal.
“For middle-income groups, for example, the fear of loss of status is the strongest driving factor towards populist parties, while in lower income groups the key factor is the more direct fear of loss of jobs and income. Similarly, the rejection of migration can be due to cultural factors, but also to fear of job losses or job competition”.
