The electoral success of the Movimento 5 Stelle: An example of a left populist vote?

Authors

  • Marc Hooghe University of Leuven, Centre for Citizenship and Democracy
  • Jennifer Oser Ben-Gurion University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15203/ozp.1049.vol44iss4

Keywords:

populism, Movimento 5 Stelle, European Social Survey

Abstract

The Movimento 5 Stelle in Italy is often cited as an example of a European trend toward the rapidly increasing electoral appeal of populist parties. This article assesses the voting motives of the Movimento electorate in comparative perspective, based on the 2012 European Social Survey. The findings show that, in contrast to the populist electorate in other European countries, Movimento voters are not motivated by anti-immigrant sentiments or by left-right ideology. Rather, Movimento voters are motivated by a negative evaluation of the functioning of the political system, and the concluding discussion relates these findings to recent political history in Italy.

Author Biographies

  • Marc Hooghe, University of Leuven, Centre for Citizenship and Democracy

    Marc Hooghe is a professor of political science at the University of Leuven (Belgium). He has published mainly on participation and political attitudes, and he holds an ERC Advanced Grant to investigate the democratic linkage between citizens and the state. Year of birth: 1964.

  • Jennifer Oser, Ben-Gurion University

    Jennifer Oser is an assistant professor of Politics and Government at Ben-Gurion University (Israel), and a Senior Researcher for the Centre for Citizenship and Democracy at the University of Leuven (Belgium). She has conducted research on inequality and political participation as a research fellow at Harvard University, and on online participation and citizenship norms as a visiting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania. Her main research topics include the comparative study of political behavior and attitudes, online political participation, participatory inequality, and linkages between citizen participation and policy outcomes. Year of birth: 1975.

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Published

2016-02-01

Issue

Section

Research Article

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