Suchergebnisse

In the wake of his victory in the New York mayoral election's Democratic primary earlier this month some commentators have labelled Bill de Blasio as 'populist', especially in light of his policies aimed at narrowing the gaps between rich and poor. Duncan McDonnell takes issue with the use of the common use of the term 'populist' in this way, arguing that true populists juxtapose the idea of "good" people with a "bad" set of elites, and wish to restore what they argue is the voice of the people by removing the checks, balances, structures and complexities of liberal democracy.

While the literature on directly elected mayors has largely neglected the relationship between mayors and their parties, studies of party transformation have generally ignored how changes in local democratic rules and practices affect parties. This article addresses these questions using a qualitative case study of the relationship between mayors and the three faces of their parties (in local public office, local central office and on the ground) in Genoa and Lausanne. Based on interviews with the mayors, elected representatives and party members, it finds in the two cases that, as long as these mayors can count on high levels of popularity and are not nearing the end of their term, they are 'party detached'. When these factors do not apply and/or party institutionalization increases, the relationship with the party in local central office (although not with the party in local public office or on the ground) becomes more significant.

Of all populist movements in Europe, Italy's Lega Nord can perhaps lay claim to the greatest political success. The party has been in government three times, including for eight of the last 11 years, and has held several key ministries in coalition govern¬ments led by Silvio Berlusconi. It is a party with a clear ideology, emphasising tough limits on immigration, greater northern autonomy, and characterising Muslims and Islam as representing a fundamental threat to the values and cul¬tural integrity of northern Italians. This report presents the results of a survey of Facebook fans of the Lega Nord. It includes data on who they are, what they think, and what motivates them to shift from virtual to real-world activism. It also compares them to supporters of similar parties in Western Europe, shedding light on their growing online support, and the relationship between online and offline activities. ; -- Acknowledgments -- A note on terminology -- Executive summary -- Background -- Who are the Lega Nord's Facebook supporters? -- Social and political concerns -- Why do people support the Lega Nord online? -- Annex: methodology -- Notes -- References

New social and political movements from radically different political positions have emerged across Europe using the Internet to challenge existing parties and structures. Beppe Grillo, the Italian comedian and blogger, is the most prominent figure to have embraced this change through the creation first of all of the 'Friends of Beppe Grillo' meet-up groups and then, in 2009, the Movimento Cinque Stelle (M5S - Five-Star Movement), What makes Grillo and the M5S especially interesting is how they combine online and offline activities both in their communications and mobilization strategies. Having detailed the history, structure and policies of the M5S, this report presents the results of a survey of 1,865 Facebook fans of Beppe Grillo and the Movimento 5 Stelle. It includes data on who they are, what they think, and what motivates them to shift from virtual to real-world activism. It finds them to be characterized by extremely low levels of trust in mainstream parties, parliament and traditional media. ; -- Acknowledgements 7 -- A note on terminology 9 -- Executive summary 11 -- 1 Background 21 -- 2 Findings 29 -- 3 Method 45 -- Notes 49 -- References 57