Political power and the globalizing spread of populist politics

摘要

Populism has recently been surging with explanations to date focusing on economic or cultural power. This paper builds on Mann's work to develop an explanation centered on political power instead. It presents an account of populism's longer-term trajectories and a process of struggle 'from below' for citizenship rights, which should be curtailed for some and expanded for others. This paper compares four countries - Sweden, the United States, India and China - their commonalities but also the differences in terms of how 'others', internally and externally, are excluded, and how elites are criticized. The conclusion assesses the prospects for populists in power.