Populist Parties in Europe: Agents of Discontent?

Populism is a concept that is currently in vogue among political commentators and, more often than not, used pejoratively. The phenomenon of populism is typically seen as something adverse and, in the European context routinely related to xenophobic politics. What populism exactly is and who its main representatives are, however, often remains unclear. This text has two main aims: to identify populist parties in 21st century Europe and to explain their electoral performance. It argues that populist parties should not be dismissed as dangerous pariahs out of hand but rather that their rise tells us something about the state of representative democracy. The study has a broad scope, including populist parties of various ideological kinds – thus moving beyond examples of the ‘right’ – and covering long-established Western European countries as well as post-communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe. It presents the results of an innovative mixed-methods research project, combining a fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) of populist parties in 31 European countries with three in-depth case studies of the Netherlands, Poland and the United Kingdom.

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction: Studying Populism in European Party Systems 2. Populist Parties in 31 European Countries 3. Paths to Populist Electoral Success and Failure: fsQCA Analysis 4. Populist Parties in the Netherlands 5. Populist Parties in Poland 6. Populist Parties in the United Kingdom 7. Conclusion: Populist Parties and their Electoral Performance

About the Author :
Stijn van Kessel is Lecturer in European Politics at Queen Mary University of London. His main research interests are populism, Euroscepticism, and the discourse, voters and electoral performance of populist parties in Europe. He authored articles in journals including European Journal of Political Research, Journal of European Integration, Journal of Political Ideologies and Government and Opposition.  

Review :
"Kessel explores their role as agents of discontent in three European countries where power has eluded them. ... he explores the shifting priorities of the literature and offers a useful typology of populism, as well as a survey of performances in different parts of Europe that is bound to be helpful to students." (Tom Gallagher, International Affairs, Vol. 91 (6), 2015) 'This book brilliantly bridges the gap between big datasets and detailed case studies to add significantly to our understanding of populist parties' electoral successes. The key, it seems, is not just the inadequacies of their mainstream rivals but also the credibility of the insurgents. This is a great example of the way comparative methods can say something important not just to academics but to politicians who operate in the real world.' < Tim Bale, Professor of Politics, Queen Mary University of London, UK 'An important and very timely contribution to our understanding of populism and populist parties. Van Kessel provides an excellent treatment of the concept of populism and adopts an innovative approach to explain the varying fortunes of these parties. The coverage is extensive, the research is empirically rich, and the findings are interesting and convincing.' Elisabeth Carter, Senior Lecturer in Politics, Keele University, UK 'Stijn van Kessel brings a refreshing approach to the increasingly stale study of populist electoral success in Europe by going beyond the populist radical right, employing mixed-methods (i.e. fsQCA and case studies), and focusing on the agency of populist actors themselves.' Cas Mudde, Associate Professor in the Department of International Affairs, University of Georgia, USA