With a recent rise in popularity, populism has become a frequently studied subject for political science research. However, despite the expansive research, academia still struggles to properly define the phenomenon which has resulted in several conflicting understandings of populism. The aim of this study is to compare two prominent definitions of populism: Cas Mudde and Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser’s thin-centered ideology approach and Benjamin Moffitt’s political style approach on a previously unexplored case in the form of Örebropartiet, a local populist party in Sweden. Using a qualitative content analysis, the party program and the party leader’s commentary is analysed to determine whether the definitions manage to identify the party as a populist one. The results are mixed: both definitions manage to capture the antagonistic divide between “the people” and “the elite” while still struggling in other aspects, more specifically in regards to Mudde and Kaltwasser’s host ideology aspect and Moffitt’s performance of crisis aspect. The study concludes with an acknowledgement that both definitions have inherent problems identifying Örebropartiet as a populist party which needs to be corrected if we want to expand our collective knowledge on both Örebropartiet and populism in general.

This thesis aims to examine if performative populism exists within the Sweden Democrats and if the level of populism has changed over time. By using a gradational approach when conceptualising populism, it seeks to address a case of ‘mixed bags’. Furthermore, this paper address questions regarding how to measure populism and how to operationalise populism into context. Populism is conceptualised as a political style, according to Benjamin Moffitt’s work on populism. Thus, the performative side of the leader is central. This includes content, rhetoric, gestures and the theatrical side of the leader’s performance. By using a twofold methodological approach, a quantitative content analysis, followed by a qualitative one, both frequency of populist indications and how they relate to each other can be accounted for. Results indicate that populism exists within the Sweden Democrats, and that the level of populism seems to be increasing over time. Moreover, while the methodological approach is sufficient for measuring the level in terms of less and more, it cannot account for degree in terms of index.