Populists and referendums in Europe: dispelling the myth

Gherghina, S. and Silagadze, N. (2020) Populists and referendums in Europe: dispelling the myth. Political Quarterly, 91(4), pp. 795-805. (doi: 10.1111/1467-923X.12934)

Abstract

Many researchers, journalists and politicians are inclined to connect populism and referendums. While in theory the two rest on similar principles, in practice this is not the case. This article shows that populist political elites make limited use of referendums compared both to their rhetoric and to non‐populists. Our findings indicate that the use of referendums is not a reflection of populist politics. They also illustrate how populists may initiate referendums strategically, and they win them quite often. The analysis draws on all sixty‐four national level referendums in Europe initiated by political elites between 2000 and 2019.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Gherghina, Dr Sergiu
• Authors: Gherghina, S., and Silagadze, N.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics
• Journal Name: Political Quarterly
• Publisher: Wiley
• ISSN: 0032-3179
• ISSN (Online): 1467-923X
• Published Online: 31 October 2020
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2020 Political Quarterly Publishing Co (PQPC)
• First Published: First published in Political Quarterly 91(4): 795-805
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy