Euroscepticism in local elections manifestos of populist parties in the Czech Republic

For some populist parties, Euroscepticism is central to their ideology. There is a close relationship between Euroscepticism and radical right populist parties, which often critique the EU from nationalist perspectives. These parties portray the EU as a threat to national sovereignty, accusing its policies of dismantling state authority and contributing to cultural disintegration within Europe. They also express fundamental opposition to certain EU policies, especially those related to climate change and migration. While Euroscepticism is typically studied at the national level, its manifestations in local politics remain far less explored. At the local level, such narratives may be muted by substantial flows of EU subsidies directed primarily toward less developed areas. Conversely, EU-funded projects may be framed by radical right actors as symbols of external control, excessive bureaucracy, or favoritism toward specific groups. Local debates over EU-funded projects thus provide opportunities to translate abstract, sovereignty-based critiques into concrete, place-based grievances. The aim of this paper is to examine how populist (radical right) parties address the issue of the EU in their manifestos for the 2018 and 2022 local elections. The paper focuses primarily on SPD, representing a radical right populist profile, and ANO, a more centrist or technocratic form of populism. Analyzing these distinct party types enables us to better distinguish what constitutes a generally populist strategy and what reflects a specifically radical right approach in the local context. The paper addresses this question by analyzing over 500 electoral manifestos from local elections in the Czech Republic using systematic content analysis. In addition, it explores how Eurosceptic positions correlate with characteristics of municipalities, such as the amount of EU-funded subsidies, support for EU membership in the 2004 referendum, location (center/periphery), and population size. The findings contribute to a better understanding of how Euroscepticism is articulated, adapted, or silenced in local arenas and what this reveals about the broader dynamics of populism in multi-level governance settings.