Doomed to failure? UKIP and the organisational challenges facing right-wing populist anti-political establishment parties

Abedi, A. and Lundberg, T.C. (2009) Doomed to failure? UKIP and the organisational challenges facing right-wing populist anti-political establishment parties. Parliamentary Affairs, 62(1), pp. 72-87. (doi: 10.1093/pa/gsn036)

Abstract

Using the UK Independence Party, we examine the effects of sudden electoral success on an Anti-Political Establishment (APE) party. The pressures of aspiring to government necessitate organisational structures resembling those of mainstream parties, while this aspiration challenges APE parties because they differ not just in terms of their policy profiles, but also in their more ‘unorthodox’ organisational make-up, inextricably linked to their electoral appeal. Robert Kilroy-Silk wanted to emphasise office-seeking goals while most members wanted the party to remain true to its APE status and not sacrifice its populist nature. This inevitably resulted in internal party conflict.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Parliamentary Affairs following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version [Abedi, A. and Lundberg, T.C. (2009) Doomed to failure? UKIP and the organisational challenges facing right-wing populist anti-political establishment parties. Parliamentary Affairs, 62 (1). pp. 72-87. ISSN 0031-2290] is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/pa/gsn036.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Lundberg, Dr Thomas
• Authors: Abedi, A., and Lundberg, T.C.
• Subjects: J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe) > JN101 Great Britain
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics
• Journal Name: Parliamentary Affairs
• Publisher: Oxford University Press on behalf of the Hansard Society for Parliamentary Government
• ISSN: 0031-2290
• ISSN (Online): 1460-2482
• Published Online: 03 October 2008
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2008 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Parliamentary Affairs 62(1):72-87
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher