Conspiring Elites and Disgruntled Masses? Revisiting the Populist and Extremist Challenges to Democracy

What is next in research on populism, radicalism and extremism? Recent developments shook citizens, political commentators and academics around the globe: key foundations and achievements of modern democracies suddenly seemed more fragile than previously assumed. The rise of radical, anti-democratic, and populist actors is giving new impetus to anti-democratic and conspiratorial ideas, influencing political debates and decisions, and threatening to shake the very foundations of democracy. In recent years, countries had to implement severe restrictions on mobility to cope with the pandemic. Populists and conspiracy theorists opposed these policies, condemning a potential corroboration of fundamental civic and democratic rights. On the one hand, they benefitted from policy-making that had seemingly become expert-driven and unresponsive to the ‘common people’. On the other, by ‘fueling discontent’ and skepticism towards vaccination and science in general, they have arguably contributed to prolonging the crisis. These developments, especially in times when solidarity and concerted action in response to global social, economic, and ecological transitions are essential, should encourage us to examine the various threats to democracy more closely. Populist (and ‘anti-populist’) discourses threaten to undermine responsible and effective policy-making and permeate political debate very likely also post-Trump and post-Covid-19. More generally, political science scholars have lamented ‘democratic backsliding’. The US has witnessed democratic erosion, the structure of the Polish justice system has suffered damages, the Brazilian president Bolsonaro threatened to cancel elections. Rising nationalism and nativism have likewise presented a challenge, in the form of exclusionary policies that marginalize minorities and in terms of principled opposition to Europeanization and reclamation of national sovereignty. For this section, we therefore invite contributions that assess the nature and extent of populist and extremist challenges to democracy worldwide, and how they can be overcome. The section embraces theoretical and methodological pluralism. Preference will be given to innovative panels that mirror the diversity of the ECPR research community in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, rank and regional specialization. Scholars are invited to propose panels that offer new theoretical and methodological perspectives and broadly cover the following aspects: • Party Competition And Party Strategies Populist and radical parties seldom win elections, yet their demands as well as exclusionary reactions to them often lead to political and affective polarization, rendering it nearly impossible to steer a middle course. Hence, how do non-radical and traditional mass parties specifically cope with the trade-offs between their (governing) responsibilities and responsiveness towards populist, radical right and radical left as well as extremist ideas? What explains various degrees and forms of accommodation? And is there an (anti-)populist ‘Zeitgeist’? • New and Old Forms Of Party Organization Still strong men and charismatic leaders? Albeit often short-lived, their ideas and party platforms remain and appear to grow more united. Is ‘lack of organization’ a thing of the past when populism was still ‘new’? Are they growing more democratic and inclusive and if so, what explains these developments? What is the degree of loyalty and members’ identification with populist, radical and extremist actors? Populists are traditionally good at shifting political identities and are becoming more cohesive, yet also face high levels of ‘negative partisanship’. Hence, are they growing stronger, or are we even witnessing a revival of traditional mass-party like internal organization? • Protest, Movements And (Online) Activism What drives radical and extremist protest and mobilization? What cross-regional and cross-group differences exist? What new forms of online and offline activism do populist, radical and extremist actors adopt as strategic means of influencing political discourse and setting the agenda? Recent years have also seen a rise in Covid-19-skeptical and anti-science activism that managed to attract a heterogeneous pool of supporters on the streets. What explains their varying success and their potential durability? • Populist, Radical, and Extremist Actors And Political Communication What is the role of media in explaining the proliferation of radicalism and extremism across countries? How are conspiracy theories embedded in populist, radical, and extremist actors’ political communication? How do they use traditional and non-traditional media channels to voice their views? Does social media increase polarization among parties, citizens, and other actors? To what extent do radicalism and new media channels fuse into new forms of protest and with what repercussions for democracy? • Warding Off Extremist Challenges From Within And Outside Of Government How are populist, radical, and extremist movements and actors threatening (liberal) democracy and its institutions? What are the policy consequences of populist, extremist, or radical parties in (sub-)national or regional governments? What are counter-strategies to radicalism and extremism that can be applied by civil society actors, citizens, and parties? Which ones are successful? What role does government performance play in ‘(de-)activating’ populist, radical, and extremist attitudes? • Individual Drivers Of Populism, Radicalism, and Extremism What attracts people to left-wing or right-wing radicalism and extremism, today? What makes citizens susceptible to conspiracy theories? How do supporters of these actors view democracy? Temporary protest or lost for good: Through which processes and means do voters radicalize and deradicalize? What explains why some people and supporters of radical and extremist groups resort to political violence and terrorism? • Emerging Discourses And Forms Of Action What are the emerging post-Covid-19 discourses of radical, populist, and extremist groups and actors? In what ways do their discourses shape public debate? What are traditional and modern tactics, policy claims, and long-term goals? To what extent does radicalization of claims ‘spill’ to the streets? What role do conspiracy frames (‘plandemic’) and science skepticism play in populist campaigns? What explains cross-regional variation in the saliency of these issues to populist, radical, and extremist actors? • New Approaches And Methodological Advances Which new methods and techniques can advance the studies of democratic backsliding and its drivers? How can we operationalize and measure individuals’ often contradictory expectations of and satisfaction with different regimes? How do individuals conceive of democracy and of populism? In short, what new and innovative, qualitative and quantitative methods and theoretical approaches can equip us to overcome shortcomings in the study of the nature, the drivers and consequences of populism, radicalism, and extremism today?