Maurits Meijers
Maurits Meijers and Andrej Zaslove address the ‘myth’ that populist beliefs among citizens are harmful for liberal democracy. Using insights from recent research, they argue that highly populist citizens are not more likely than other citizens to reject the principles of liberal democracy Read more
Mattia Zulianello
Mattia Zulianello and Petra Guasti explore and rebut three die-hard myths about populism. This, they argue, on the one hand guards against overestimating populism as a phenomenon. On the other, it warns that we must not underestimate the political strength of the so-called populist radical right Read more
Reginald Oduor
Reginald M.J. Oduor encourages more political theorists to disentangle themselves from the idea that democracy and elections are inextricably bound. Through this he seeks to promote the pursuit of genuine citizen participation in post-colonial states in Africa and elsewhere Read more
Guido Panzano
The likely installation of a neo-fascist Prime Minister has generated considerable fears for the future of Italian democracy. Guido Panzano argues that we should use the tools available in political science to arrive at a more scientific understanding of the prospects for the quality of Italian democracy under such a government Read more
Orlaith Rice
Frustration with integration policy and fear of crime, two issues which Swedish political rhetoric and public opinion increasingly conflates, fuels the Sweden Democrats’ onward journey into mainstream politics. Orlaith Rice considers where SD sits under labels of populism and illiberalism Read more
Yida Zhai
Public perceptions of democracy are diverse, and some even see democracy in authoritarian regimes. So directly using ‘democracy’ in surveys is prone to elicit biased responses. Therefore, Yida Zhai argues, it is necessary to conceptualise and operationalise democracy in an alternative manner without using the ‘D-word’ Read more
Rongxin Li
Democracy is unconsciously linked to 'the West', avers Rongxin Li, especially Anglo-Saxon-type governmental arrangements such as liberal democracy. Seeing how our planet speaks about 'democracy' to those who can hear it, all forms of 'democracy', like Minben, should be on an even standing with Western models Read more
Valentina Ausserladscheider
Across the globe, rar-right populism is on the rise. Its exclusionary nationalist nature poses a threat for liberal democracies. Taking Austria as a case study, Valentina Ausserladscheider explains the less obvious ways far-right populist nationalism can become deeply entangled with neoliberal economic policymaking Read more
