Populism in Action

We are out in force yet again in London to present the monograph originating from our Populism in Action project! Book your place below

We will present our book 'Populist Radical Right Parties in Action: The Survival of the Mass Party' (Oxford UP) at Queen Mary University of London on Thursday, November 20th, 5-6:30pm GMT. Corina Lacatus will discuss, and there will be a reception. Register via 👉 tinyurl.com/382xbuy5

The deadline for #PSA26 is tomorrow! Our group @psa-italian.bsky.social is accepting proposals on:

🇮🇹 Italian politics
🖼️ Visual populism - collab with @populismpsa.bsky.social
🚜 Rural politics - with @psagreekpol.bsky.social
🌐 Populism & IR - with @psainter-relations.bsky.social

Direct links below:

.@stijntvankessel.bsky.social,
@mattiazulianello.bsky.social, @adrianfavero.bsky.social, @jsijstermans.bsky.social, @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social

This is tomorrow and you can still sign up to attend online!

This week 👇
“Populist Radical Right Parties in Action” - October 15, King’s College London

🚨There is still time to register for attending online!

We are on the road again to present the major output of our research, funded by the ESRC.

Don't miss our principal and co-investigators next Wednesday, if you are in London! Details below 👇

We are on the road again to present the major output of our research, funded by the ESRC.

Don't miss our principal and co-investigators next Wednesday, if you are in London! Details below 👇

The Department of Politics & IR at the University of Surrey invites applications for fully funded ESRC SEDarc studentships for PhD study, starting in October 2026.

They cover fees and stipend for UK & international students
Deadline: 19 January 2026

www.surrey.ac.uk/fees-and-fun...

.@amykazmin.bsky.social of the @financialtimes.com on the many protests & strikes in Italy to put pressure on Meloni over Gaza.

As l say in my comments for this article, ultimately l do not think she will shift her position.

As the convenors of @psa-italian.bsky.social, @dbonansinga.bsky.social and l are looking forward to your submissions in advance of PSA26 in Oxford.

Note our CFPs below!

Italy’s coalition sends mixed messages on Ukraine and Russia Italian voters are ambivalent, so the government is too

This week I spoke to The Economist about the positions of Italy's governing parties towards Russia.

www.economist.com/europe/2025/...

(PDF) The Spiral of Ressentiment: Emotions and Stigma in Populist Radical-Right Party Activism PDF | Why are populist radical-right party activists intensely motivated to become involved in their party? These activists combine disaffection with... | Find, read and cite all the research you need...

Our team has been busy in recent weeks!

@jsijstermans.bsky.social has published an article in Government and Opposition on emotions and stigma in Populist Radical-Right Party activism that draws on the interviews conducted by the PiAP team. Congrats to Judith:

www.researchgate.net/publication/...

Really nice to see the members of the Populism in Action team being so busy lately...

Keep your eyes peeled on this account for more news on the work of our research team in the near future!

While our team member @mattiazulianello.bsky.social has just announced winning a prestigious prize (with Mirko Crulli) for the best paper presented at last year’s Conference of the Italian Political Science Association 👏

bsky.app/profile/matt...

(PDF) The Spiral of Ressentiment: Emotions and Stigma in Populist Radical-Right Party Activism PDF | Why are populist radical-right party activists intensely motivated to become involved in their party? These activists combine disaffection with... | Find, read and cite all the research you need...

Our team has been busy in recent weeks!

@jsijstermans.bsky.social has published an article in Government and Opposition on emotions and stigma in Populist Radical-Right Party activism that draws on the interviews conducted by the PiAP team. Congrats to Judith:

www.researchgate.net/publication/...

One to read...

Very nice to meet you, printed version of our book... :-)

🦋 WELCOME TO BLUESKY! I recommend exploring our custom feeds, which are a little like hashtags but more interesting. We have them for academic and professional subjects, sports, cities, hobbies (e.g., gardening, baking), and many more. Search them in the sidebar under Feeds. 🧵

@stijntvankessel.bsky.social, @mattiazulianello.bsky.social, @adrianfavero.bsky.social, @jsijstermans.bsky.social, @dbonansinga.bsky.social, @scottlucas.bsky.social, @uniofsurrey.bsky.social, @italianpolitics.bsky.social, @cbesurrey.bsky.social, @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social

Comparative Conclusions and Implications Abstract. The final chapter offers a holistic portrayal of the life inside our selected populist radical right parties (PRRPs): the League for Salvini Prem

Find a link to the conclusions of our book here:
academic.oup.com/book/60532/c...

Hence the mass party survives on the right, too —and continues to provide specific ideological and practical advantages to its adopters. However, activists are only offered 'participation without power' by party elites...

Interestingly, the PRRPs under discussion here appear to have found a way to ‘have their cake and eat it’: they are able to rely on a very committed group of activists, while also avoiding giving them too much of a say over how the party is run, its ideology, and its electoral strategy.

By demonstrating how the adoption of the mass party model by PRRPs challenges conventional scholarly wisdom, the chapter offers practical lessons for old as well as new political parties that struggle to retain their electoral support and that are perceived to be losing touch with society.

The chapter finds that, rather than a coherent shift towards ‘electoral-professional’ forms of party organization that rely ever less on active membership and involvement, what we witness is a process whereby different party types survive, adapt, and coexist, including the mass party.

The final chapter offers a holistic portrayal of the life inside our selected populist radical right parties (PRRPs): the League for Salvini Premier (Italy), the Vlaams Belang (Belgium), the Finns Party (Finland), and the Swiss People’s Party/Democratic Union of the Centre (Switzerland).

Populist Radical Right Parties in Action: The Survival of the Mass Party Abstract. This book investigates why and how several contemporary populist radical right parties (PRRPs) in Western Europe adopt the supposedly outdated ma

In the final chapter of our new book “Populist Radical Right Parties in Action: The Survival of the Mass Party" we provide our comparative conclusions, after discussing party organisation & activism within 4 radical right parties in Europe.

The book is free to download:
academic.oup.com/book/60532

Why Do Party Members Offer Their Commitment? Abstract. This chapter presents the results derived from interviews with active members from the following populist radical right party (PRRP) parties: the

In chapter 5 of our new book “Populist Radical Right Parties in Action” we provide an account of the lived experiences of the active members of four radical right parties in Europe. What motivates them to stay in these organisations?

The book is free to read: academic.oup.com/book/60532/c...

. @stijntvankessel.bsky.social, @mattiazulianello.bsky.social, @adrianfavero.bsky.social, @jsijstermans.bsky.social, @dbonansinga.bsky.social, @scottlucas.bsky.social, @uniofsurrey.bsky.social, @italianpolitics.bsky.social