Do populist radical right parties influence the political positions of established parties on gender-related questions? The case of the UK

Over the past 15 years, the resurgence of populist radical right parties (PRRPs) in European politics has garnered significant attention from scholars, particularly regarding their impact on party systems and competition structures. Existing literature highlights the structuring of party competition around pivotal issues such as immigration and European integration (Alonso and Claro da Fonseca, 2012; Hobolt, 2016; Downes and Loveless, 2018; Akkerman, 2018; Joppke, 2020). Scholars suggest that PRRPs have the potential to influence the positions of moderate parties (Albertazzi and Vampa, 2021; Mudde, 2014; de Lange, 2012). This project aims to investigate the extent to which the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) and the Reform Party have influenced the positions of the British Conservative Party and the Labour Party on gender related issues including gender equality, women rights, and LGBTQ+ rights. Employing a mixed-method approach, this study first examines the party manifestos of UKIP, the Reform Party, the Conservative Party, and the Labour Party for the 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2024 general elections. Then, the project analyzes the political parties’ official social media accounts, specifically Facebook and Instagram, by focusing on posts published within six months leading up to the general elections. Additionally, it involves 40 semi-structured elite interviews with figures from the Conservative Party and the Labour Party, including MPs and advisors.