The Weakness of Populism in Spain

  1. Astrid Barrio
Revue:
Debats: Revista de cultura, poder i societat

ISSN: 0212-0585,  2530-3074

Année de publication: 2020

Número: 5

Pages: 197-209

Type: Article

DOI: 10.28939/IAM.DEBATS-EN.2020-11 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openDialnet editor

D'autres publications dans: Debats: Revista de cultura, poder i societat

Objectifs de Développement Durable

Résumé

This paper analyses why Populism has failed to take root in Spain despite a ‘soil’ that has favoured its seeding and growth elsewhere. At first sight, Spain seems to provide the conditions in which Populism can thrive: a deep economic crisis (which began with the financial meltdown in 2008) and a succession of corruption scandals affecting all the main political parties. Even so, Populism has failed to gain a hold in Spain. The traditional Far Right is very weak, and new parties such as Podemos and Ciudadanos cannot be considered Populist. While Vox displays all the features of a radical right-wing party, it is one from which Populism is absent. We argue that the lack of Populism in Spain can mainly be explained by the highly fractured nature of the country’s politics, with left-right and national fault lines shaping how political competition plays out in the nation.

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