Challenger parties and populism

de Vries, Catherine E. and Hobolt, Sara (2020) Challenger parties and populism. LSE Public Policy Review, 1 (1). pp. 1-8. ISSN 2633-4046

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Abstract

The recent rise of populist parties across Europe has attracted much attention. But is this a new phenomenon? In this article, we argue that populist parties can be seen as a type of challenger parties, that is, political entrepreneurs without government experience seeking to disrupt the dominance of mainstream parties. We discuss how ongoing changes in European party systems compares with previous waves of challenger parties, including social democratic and green parties. We then present the core strategies used by successful challengers, namely issue entrepreneurship and anti-establishment rhetoric, as they mobilize issues that gives them an electoral advantage and attack the competence of the established political parties. Finally, we consider what the rise of challenger parties may mean for democracy in Europe.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://ppr.lse.ac.uk/
Additional Information:	© 2020 CC-BY The Author(s)
Divisions:	Government
Subjects:	J Political Science > JF Political institutions (General)
Date Deposited:	24 Jul 2020 14:27
Last Modified:	15 Sep 2023 16:32
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/105787

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