Populism | History, Facts, & Examples

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He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science (Northwestern University) and has written numerous articles...</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> André Munro</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2024-11-22T00:00:00CST" >Nov 22, 2024</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/populism/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 ai-ask-button btn border-2 module-spacing btn-sm js-inline-ai-ask-button btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Key People: </dt> <dd><a href="/biography/Preston-Manning" topicid="362616">Preston Manning</a></dd> <dd><a href="/biography/Aleksandr-Ivanovich-Herzen" topicid="263996">Aleksandr Ivanovich Herzen</a></dd> <dd><a href="/biography/William-Allen-White" topicid="642092">William Allen White</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Related Topics: </dt> <dd><a href="/topic/political-system" topicid="467746">political system</a></dd> <dd><a href="/topic/democracy" topicid="157129">democracy</a></dd> <dd><a href="/topic/ideology-society" topicid="281943">ideology</a></dd> <dd><a href="/topic/challenges-to-democracy" topicid="2227608">challenges to democracy</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>On the Web: </dt> <dd><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-43301423" target="_blank">BBC - What is populism, and what does the term actually mean?</a> (Nov. 22, 2024)</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/populism"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref1070041"></span>populism</strong>, political program or movement that champions, or claims to champion, the common person, usually by favourable contrast with a real or perceived elite or establishment. Populism usually <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="combines" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/combines" data-type="EB">combines</a> elements of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/left" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">left</a> and the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/right" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">right</a>, opposing large business and financial interests but also frequently being hostile to established <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/liberalism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">liberal</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/socialism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">socialist</a>, and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/organized-labor" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">labour</a> parties.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The term <em>populism</em> can designate either <span id="ref1178976"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/democracy" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">democratic</a> or <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/authoritarianism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">authoritarian</a> movements. Populism is typically critical of political <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/representation-government" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">representation</a> and anything that mediates the relation between the people and their leader or government. In its most democratic form, populism seeks to defend the interests and maximize the power of ordinary citizens, through reform rather than <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/revolution-politics" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">revolution</a>. In the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">United States</a> the term was applied to the program of the <span id="ref1178977"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Populist-Movement" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Populist Movement</a>, which gave rise to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Narodnik" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Populist</a>, or People’s, Party in 1892. Many of the party’s demands were later adopted as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/law" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">laws</a> or <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/amendment" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">constitutional amendments</a> (e.g., a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/progressive-tax" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">progressive tax</a> system). The <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="populist" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/populist" data-type="MW">populist</a> demand for <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/direct-democracy" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">direct democracy</a> through <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/referendum" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">popular initiatives and referenda</a> also become a reality in a number of U.S. states.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="72076" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/76/61076-050-7A002640/Juan-Peron-Eva-president-Buenos-Aires-term.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/470472/72076"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/76/61076-050-7A002640/Juan-Peron-Eva-president-Buenos-Aires-term.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/76/61076-050-7A002640/Juan-Peron-Eva-president-Buenos-Aires-term.jpg?w=300" alt="Juan Perón and Eva Perón" data-width="1600" data-height="1066" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/76/61076-050-7A002640/Juan-Peron-Eva-president-Buenos-Aires-term.jpg" data-href="/media/1/470472/72076">Juan Perón and Eva Perón</a><span>Juan Perón and his wife, Eva, in Buenos Aires on inauguration day (June 9, 1952) of his second term as president of Argentina.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">In its contemporary understanding, however, populism is most often associated with an <span id="ref1178978"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/authoritarianism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">authoritarian</a> form of politics. Populist politics, following this definition, revolve around <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="charismatic" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/charismatic" data-type="MW">charismatic</a> leaders who appeal to and claim to embody the will of the people in order to consolidate their own power. In this personalized form of politics, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/political-party" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">political parties</a> lose their importance, and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/election-political-science" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">elections</a> serve to confirm the leader’s authority rather than reflect the different <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="allegiances" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/allegiances" data-type="MW">allegiances</a> of the people. Some forms of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="authoritarian" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/authoritarian" data-type="MW">authoritarian</a> populism have been characterized by extreme <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/nationalism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">nationalism</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/racism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">racism</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/conspiracy-theory" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">conspiracy mongering</a>, and scapegoating of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="marginalized" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/marginalized" data-type="MW">marginalized</a> groups, each of which served to consolidate the leader’s power, to distract public attention from the leader’s failures, or to conceal from the people the nature of the leader’s rule or the real causes of economic or social problems.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-read-more-module" href="/place/Latin-America/Impact-of-the-Cuban-Revolution#ref360153" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/108730-050-B22D0AE4/Latin-America.jpg" alt="Latin America" class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-navy-dark">More From Britannica</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">history of Latin America: The advent of populism</div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">In the second half of the 20th century, populism came to be identified with the political style and program of Latin American leaders such as <span id="ref1293647"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Juan-Peron" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Juan Perón</a>, <span id="ref1293645"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Getulio-Vargas" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Getúlio Vargas</a>, and <span id="ref1293646"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hugo-Chavez" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Hugo Chávez</a>. In the early 21st century, populist authoritarian regimes arose in Turkey, Poland, and Hungary, among other countries. In the United States, according to some historians and political scholars, the administration of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Republican-Party" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Republican</a> Pres. <span id="ref1303611"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Donald-Trump" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Donald Trump</a> (2017–21) also displayed some aspects of authoritarian populism. Among them were <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="conspiracy" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conspiracy" data-type="MW">conspiracy</a> mongering, racism toward <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/African-American" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">African Americans</a> and nonwhite immigrants, distrust of democratic institutions among Trump’s core supporters, and the subservient position of the national Republican Party. Perhaps the most powerful indicator of the existence of authoritarian populism under Trump was his incitement of a mob of his supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/election-political-science" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">election</a> (<em>see</em> <span id="ref1303610"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/January-6-U-S-Capitol-attack" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">United States Capitol attack of 2021</a>).</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The term <em>populist</em> is often used pejoratively to criticize a politician for pandering to a people’s fear and enthusiasm. Depending on one’s view of populism, a populist economic program can therefore signify either a platform that promotes the interests of common citizens and the country as a whole or a platform that seeks to redistribute wealth to gain popularity, without regard to the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="consequences" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/consequences" data-type="EB">consequences</a> for the country such as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/inflation-economics" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">inflation</a> or <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/debt" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">debt</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/contributor/Andre-Munro/9278128">André Munro</a></span> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</a></span><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":470472,"pageLength":521,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"D","adLeg":"D","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"MEDIUM","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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