Populism as radical opportunism: Case studies in strategic image-building by right-wing populist parties in Europe

This dissertation examines how right-wing populist parties in Europe use image-building strategies (such as exceptionalism, underdogism, challengerism, and crisis discourse) to distinguish themselves from other parties, in order to capitalize on perceived policy convergence. It posits that populism is, at its core, a form of “radical opportunism” more so than a political movement with an underlying ideology. This explains why populism is so hard to compare across contexts, as it by definition adapts itself completely to whatever works within a particular political system, and also why populist policies and policy plans are often unrealistic and more focused on building a challenger or underdog image . It illustrates this point through six case studies: (1) Vlaams Belang and the cordon sanitaire in Belgium, (2) populist memory politics in Poland and Hungary, (3) the exploitation of the Covid-19 crisis, (4) data governance policies by right-wing populist parties in western Europe, (5) sub-state regional diplomacy, and (6) environmental policy.