scholarly journals Fear of the Known or the Unknown? Neighbourhood Dynamics and Individual-Level Sympathy for the Dutch Populist Radical Right

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sjoerdje Van Heerden ◽  
Didier Ruedin
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Data ◽  
Multilevel Models ◽  
Radical Right ◽  
Contact Theory ◽  
Mixed Composition ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Past ◽  
Populist Radical Right ◽  
Radical Right Parties

Over the past two decades populist radical right parties have become established political actors in many European countries. We examine to what extent the share of immigrants in a neighbourhood is associated with popular support for the Dutch Freedom Party (PVV). We examine individual-level changes in sympathy for the PVV using panel data, complemented with geo-spatial data to capture the share of immigrants at the level of the neighbourhoods. We use fixed-effect multilevel models for the period 2007–2014. In line with contact theory, an increased share in the proportion immigrants is associated with a decrease in sympathy for the PVV. This is particularly the case for an increase in the proportion of non-Western immigrants in the neighbourhood. At the same time, respondents who have moved to a neighbourhood with more immigrants within the period under analysis, have significantly more sympathy for the PVV. In addition, we find a statistical interaction effect for Western immigrants: Residents of traditionally ‘native’ neighbourhoods express more sympathy for the PVV when Western immigrants move in, than do residents of neighbourhoods that have been of mixed composition for a longer time.

scholarly journals Local David Versus Global Goliath: Populist Parties and the Decline of Progressive Politics in Italy

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-85
Author(s):  
Matteo Cavallaro
Keyword(s):  
Social Welfare ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Radical Right ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Social Spending ◽  
Local Policy ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Populist Radical Right ◽  
Radical Right Parties

This paper analyzes the role of local spending, particularly on social welfare, and local inequality as factors in the Italian political crisis following the adoption in 2011 of more radical national austerity measures. We employ two different methods. First, we develop an original database of municipal budgets. There we show that even the lowest level of social welfare spending, that offered by Italian municipalities, though also hit by austerity, was still able to moderate this national shock. We test three operationalizations of local spending: aggregate current expenditures, aggregate current expenditures on social services, and current expenditures disaggregated by function. We show that municipal current expenditures, particularly on social spending, significantly affected the post-2011 share of votes for the progressive coalition. The results also show that social spending, especially on education, significantly moderated the combined effect of national austerity and the economic crisis on voting for populist radical right parties, while no significant results appeared for populist parties in general. Local inequality appears to significantly enhance vote shares of populist radical right parties and populist parties in general. We caution that, although significant, the effect is not strong: that local policy and economic conditions can moderate national shocks but cannot reverse them. The second analysis relies on survey data to ascertain the individual-level mechanisms behind the role of local welfare. The paper argues that local economic inputs influence voters’ position on non-economic issues. Our results, however, do not identify any significant individual-level channel of transmission, be it cultural or economic.

How and Why the Populist Radical Right Persuades Citizens

2019 ◽  
pp. 813-837
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Ivarsflaten ◽  
Scott Blinder ◽  
Lise Bjånesøy
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Good Reason ◽  
Radical Right ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Large Share ◽  
The Past ◽  
Populist Radical Right ◽  
Electoral Support ◽  
Party Family ◽  
Established Democracies

The “populist radical right” is a contested concept in scholarly work for good reason. This chapter begins by explaining that the political parties usually grouped together under this label are not a party family in a conventional sense and do not self-identify with this category. It goes on to show how political science scholarship has established that in Europe during the past thirty or so years we have seen the rise of a set of parties that share a common ideological feature—nativism. The nativist political parties experiencing most electoral support have combined their nativist agenda with some other legitimate ideological companion, which provides deniability—a shield against charges that the nativist agenda makes the parties and their supporters right-wing extremist and undemocratic. The chapter goes on to explain that in order to make progress on our understanding of how and why the populist radical right persuades citizens, we need to recognize: first, that nativism is the only necessary ingredient without which the populist radical right loses its force; and second, that nativism in contemporary established democracies has tended not to persuade a large share of voters without an ideological companion.

Competing for Loyalists? How Party Positioning Affects Populist Radical Right Voting

2021 ◽  
pp. 001041402199716
Author(s):  
Winston Chou ◽  
Rafaela Dancygier ◽  
Naoki Egami ◽  
Amaney A. Jamal
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Evidence ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Radical Right ◽  
Immigration Policies ◽  
Populist Radical Right ◽  
Alternative Für Deutschland ◽  
Party Loyalty ◽  
The Status ◽  
Radical Right Parties ◽  
Voter Groups

As populist radical right parties muster increasing support in many democracies, an important question is how mainstream parties can recapture their voters. Focusing on Germany, we present original panel evidence that voters supporting the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD)—the country’s largest populist radical right party—resemble partisan loyalists with entrenched anti-establishment views, seemingly beyond recapture by mainstream parties. Yet this loyalty does not only reflect anti-establishment voting, but also gridlocked party-issue positioning. Despite descriptive evidence of strong party loyalty, experimental evidence reveals that many AfD voters change allegiances when mainstream parties accommodate their preferences. However, for most parties this repositioning is extremely costly. While mainstream parties can attract populist radical right voters via restrictive immigration policies, they alienate their own voters in doing so. Examining position shifts across issue dimensions, parties, and voter groups, our research demonstrates that, absent significant changes in issue preferences or salience, the status quo is an equilibrium.

scholarly journals Economic Distress and Support for Radical Right Parties—Evidence From Sweden

2021 ◽  
pp. 001041402110243
Author(s):  
Sirus H. Dehdari
Keyword(s):  
Market Competition ◽  
Radical Right ◽  
Aggregate Level ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Skilled Immigrants ◽  
Economic Distress ◽  
Radical Right Parties ◽  
Unemployment Risk ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
High Share

This paper studies the effects of economic distress on support for radical right parties. Using Swedish election data, I show that one layoff notice among low-skilled native-born workers increases, on average, support for the Swedish radical right party the Sweden Democrats by 0.17–0.45 votes. The relationship between layoff notices and support for the Sweden Democrats is stronger in areas with a high share of low-skilled immigrants and in areas with a low share of high-skilled immigrants. These findings are in line with theories suggesting that economically distressed voters oppose immigration as they fear increased labor market competition. In addition, I use individual-level survey data to show that self-reported unemployment risk is positively associated with voting for the Sweden Democrats among low-skilled respondents while the opposite is true for high-skilled respondents, echoing the aggregate-level findings.

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