Predictors of populism and anti-populism: A comparative analysis in Europe

Using data from the last wave of the European Value Survey, we analyse and compare voters of authoritarian-populist parties in some European countries. Our purpose is to determine which key features of populism are country-specific and which are general. We pay particular attention to the debate between economic deprivation versus cultural backlash theories. After an introductory section on the attitudinal characteristics of populism and anti-populism in selected EU member states, we focus on Poland and France. We seek to establish whether the recent challenges to the European project and the rule of law by the Polish governments and attacks on the European Project by French populist parties indicate two different and paradigmatic understandings of populism.