The Populism-Euroscepticism Nexus in a Contested Europe

This paper serves as a foundational review and research agenda for the EUPopLink COST Action, a coordinated international effort designed to analyze the complex interplay between populism and Euroscepticism . While these phenomena frequently co-occur and are often perceived as "two sides of the same coin," the text argues that their relationship is contingent, distinct, and unsettled rather than deterministic . The analysis begins by disaggregating the two concepts. Populism is defined as a "thin-centered ideology" or discourse based on a moralized antagonism between "the pure people" and "the corrupt elite" . In contrast, Euroscepticism is presented not as a monolithic block, but through refined typologies, including "hard" versus "soft" opposition and "policy" versus "polity" critiques . The document explores the symbiotic but variable nature of the populism-Euroscepticism nexus: The EU as the 'Other': The EU’s technocratic structure makes it a natural target for populist anti-establishment rhetoric, serving as a symbol of the distant elite . Ideological Divergence: The drivers of the nexus differ across the political spectrum. Right-wing opposition is rooted in cultural identity and sovereignty (the TAN cleavage), while left-wing opposition is driven by socio-economic grievances and anti-neoliberal sentiments . Strategic Adaptation: In the post-Brexit "polycrisis" era (marked by the pandemic, war, and inflation), populist actors have evolved. They now employ a "two-level strategy," combining institutional pragmatism to maintain viability with communicative radicalism to exploit crises as narrative devices . The text concludes that static typologies are insufficient for this fluid political environment . Consequently, the EUPopLink project aims to advance the field by developing new conceptual frameworks and generating systematic, comparative country reports to map the supply and demand sides of electoral competition across Europe .