Populism in Action

From the 1970s, populist leaders and discourses emerged all over the world, with an explosion during the financial crisis 2009–2014. Thus, populism also became popular in the scholarly literature and in public debate. According to Ricolfi (Sinistra e popolo. Il conflitto politico nell’era dei populismi. Longanesi, Milano, 2017), we can distinguish three phases. The first was a reappearance phase, from 1972 to 1984, which saw several populist parties emerging in countries such as Norway, Denmark, Greece, France and Italy. 1984 to 2008 represents a proliferation phase, which saw a mushrooming of populist parties all over Europe, apparently without a clear connection. Finally, from 2008 to 2016, there was a breakthrough phase, which saw the consolidation of populist parties in Europe, with significant electoral support for most of them. The short introduction to Sect. 1 aims at framing the case studies.