Democracy and Populism: The European Case

This chapter examines the evolution of contemporary European populism from a collection of fringe insurgencies into a deeply embedded, institution-shaping force within the European Parliament and the broader European project. Drawing on three decades of ethnographic and institutional observation, it demonstrates how populist actors have mastered the procedural, rhetorical, and technocratic mechanisms of the European Union (EU), transforming them into instruments for advancing illiberal civilizational agendas centred on identity, personhood and sovereignty. Far from operating at the margins, these movements now occupy the political centre, generating viral configurations of thought and affect that shape public discourse and institutional practice across Europe. Their ‘gain of function’ has been amplified by transnational linkages – including increasing convergence with US populist strategies – and by exogenous cultural forces that escape standard policy analysis. The chapter argues that these dynamics pose a profound challenge to liberal democracy, requiring new analytical tools commensurate with the scale and complexity of the phenomenon. Keywords: European populism; illiberalism; European Parliament; identity and sovereignty; populist insurgency; transatlantic politics