Following the 2022 Swedish general election, all three of the Scandinavian countries have had right-wing populist parties either within the government or in cooperation with one. This thesis will review the origins and developments of the major, national, right-wing populist parties in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. It will further focus on the respective party’s development of relationship with other, mainstream parties, as well as the progression of cooperations and advancement towards influence of governmental politics. With the Scandinavian states’ high level of similarities across various areas, this thesis aims to review and analyse similarities and differences from the three examples connected to the theories. This methodology is based as a qualitative, comparative study, focusing on gathered text materials such as academic works, political statements and news. The empirical material gathered will be analysed and connected to theories like convergence, political strategy and party ideology among others, with the aim to observe what aspects these theories have had regarding both the emergence of the right-wing populist parties in Scandinavia, as well as in connection to their development of cooperation with other parties. Central conclusions from the thesis’s discussion and analysis shows how political convergence through various acts and happenings, have supported the achievements of the right-wing populist parties’ goals of entering governmental cooperation. Moreover, comparisons between the countries show similarities such as these parties being shunned by the mainstream ones for example, while some differences include the societal statuses at the point of the parties’ origins.

This thesis deals with differences in the level of satisfaction with democracy between populists and non-populists in eleven Western European countries the past twenty years, with the common denominator that they all have experienced the electoral success of a populist radical-right party and a population increasingly expressing distrust and dissatisfaction with democracy. The thesis is based on a definition of populism in which it is regarded as a threat to democracy, and moreover, the thesis explores whether there are any significant differences in the level of satisfaction with democracy and whether these differences changes as time passes between these two voter groups.  The results of the analysis, which is carried out quantitively, strengthens the theoretical expectations, proving that there is a significant negative correlation between being populist and level of satisfaction with democracy, and that the effect becomes stronger as time passes. The results also align with the perception that societal changes such as modernization and globalization has contributed to the growth of new voter groups who express their dissatisfaction with democracy by opposing the establishment, thus turning to the political alternatives.

The subject of this bachelor thesis in political science has been to study how populistic rhetoric has evolved as a political phenomenon. The study has more specifically researched how presidential candidates have used populism in presidential debates. The bachelor thesis also studied if populistic rhetoric has changed over a time period between 1960 to 2016. To be able to study this, the essay has used critical discourse analysis to develop and understand how populism works. Ernesto Laclau’s On Populist Reason has also been used to create three models of understanding populism to develop the essays framework.  Through this the study has found that populistic rhetoric has come to be used more frequently in presidential debates. The study has also found that populistic rhetoric has changed form into a more aggressive style of rhetoric targeting the opponent’s character instead of the individual’s style of politics.

This study is researching the use of strategic communication in political campaigns oriented in social media platforms. The main character of this study is the Argentinian president Javier Milei during the second roundof his presidential campaign in 2023. The method used in this study is both qualitative and quantitative with a focus on content analysis. The selected data consists of nine posts from Javier Milei’s Instagram account, both video and pictures. The analysis of the research shows the strategic frame and discourse of his message in his campaign and how it shows in social media during the second round of the presidential candidacy, even research how newspapers portray him in articles. The conclusion of this study is that Javier Milei effectively used strategic political communication to frame himself as a populist leader against the elite. Heused social media, combined with traditional media coverage which allowed him to engage and mobilize voters through emotional and symbolic messages. His approach shows the importance of integrating various media channels to create a populist narrative to resonate with the voters in his campaign.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka innehållet i Sverigedemokraternas principprogram för att skapa en förståelse för inslag av radikal högerpopulism i partiets politiska ideologi, så som den kommer till uttryck i dessa texter. Forskningsfrågans relevans grundar sig i den splittring som identifierats bland forskare som sysslar med Sverigedemokraternas politiska ideologi och hur den bör definieras. Trots att Sverigedemokraterna är Sveriges näst största parti, vilket medför ett stort politiskt inflytande, finns alltså en osäkerhet bland forskare om partiets ideologi och intentioner. Det är vanligt förekommande att Sverigedemokraterna beskrivs baserat på deras ställningstagande i enskilda politiska frågor, exempelvis frågor om invandring, men i den här uppsatsen presenteras en analys av Sverigedemokraternas beskrivningar av Sverige, världen och politik i allmänhet. Mitt syfte ska besvaras genom en riktad kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Det material som analyseras är Sverigedemokraternas partiprogram/principprogram från åren 1996, 1999, 2003, 2011 och 2019. I analysen utgår jag från ett teoretiskt ramverk baserat på Jens Rydgrens beskrivningar av radikal högerpopulism. En idealtyp för radikal högerpopulism formuleras med syftet att förenkla och förtydliga ideologins olika grundbultar. Resultatet visar att Sverigedemokraternas principprogram innehåller radikala högerpopulistiska tendenser under alla år, men det identifieras också skillnader som indikerar att principprogrammens primära fokus varierar under åren. Partiets invandringspolitiska ståndpunkter är centrala delar som går i linje med ideologin i samtliga program, där en intolerans inför olikheter och stark etnopluralistisk nationalism identifierats. De radikala högerpopulistiska tendenser som identifieras förekommer i en sådan utsträckning, även 2019, att studiens resultat kan tolkas som stöd till påståenden om att radikal högerpopulism kan användas för att beskriva Sverigedemokraternas ideologi. / The purpose of this study is to examine the content of the Sweden Democrats' party program in order to create an understanding of potential elements of radical right-wing populism in the party's ideology, as expressed in these texts. The relevance of the research question is based on the division identified among researchers of the Sweden Democrats' political ideology and how it should be defined. Even though the Sweden Democrats are Sweden's second largest party, which entails a large political influence, there is still a great deal of uncertainty among the public as well as experts about the party's ideology and intentions. It is common for the Sweden Democrats to be described based on their stance on individual political issues, for example issues of immigration, but this essay presents an analysis of the Sweden Democrats' descriptions of Sweden, the world and politics in general. My purpose is to be answered through a targeted qualitative content analysis. The material that is analyzed is the Sweden Democrats' party programs from the years 1996, 1999, 2003, 2011 and 2019. In the analysis, I use a theoretical framework based on Jens Rydgren's descriptions of radical right-wing populism. An ideal type for radical right-wing populism is formulated with the aim of simplifying and clarifying the core of the ideology. The results show that the Sweden Democrats' party programs contain radical right-wing populist tendencies between the years 1996-2019, but differences are also identified which indicate that the primary focus in the party programs vary over the years. The party’s immigration policies align particularly well with the ideology in all programs, where an intolerance towards differences and a strong ethnopluralist nationalism have been identified. The radical right-wing populist tendencies that are identified occur to such an extent, even in 2019, that the study's results can be interpreted as support for claims that radical right-wing populism can be used to describe the ideology of the Sweden Democrats.

Essay I (with Mattias Öhman): Fluoridation of the drinking water is a public policy whose aim is to improve dental health. Although the evidence is clear that fluoride is good for dental health, concerns have been raised regarding potential negative effects on cognitive development. We study the effects of fluoride exposure through the drinking water in early life on cognitive and non-cognitive ability, education and labor market outcomes in a large-scale setting. We use a rich Swedish register dataset for the cohorts born 1985-1992, together with drinking water fluoride data. To estimate the effect we exploit intra-municipality variation of fluoride, stemming from an exogenous variation in the bedrock. First, we investigate and confirm the long-established positive relationship between fluoride and dental health. Second, we find precisely estimated zero effects on cognitive ability, non-cognitive ability and education. We do not find any evidence that fluoride levels below 1.5 mg/l have negative effects. Third, we find evidence that fluoride improves labor market outcome later in life, which indicates that good dental health is a positive factor on the labor market. / Essay II: Motivated by the intense public debate in the United States regarding politicians’ backgrounds, I investigate the effects of electing a candidate with earlier experience from elective office to the House of Representatives. The U.S. two-party-system with single-member election districts enables me to estimate the causal effect in a RD design where the outcomes are measured at the election district level. I find some indications that candidates with earlier elective experience are more likely to be members of important congressional committees. I also find some indications that directed federal spending (pork barrel spending) is higher in those districts were the elected representative had earlier elective experience prior of being elected to the House, but the effect manifests itself some years after the election. In contrast, I find no robust or statistically significant effects for personal income per capita or unemployment rate in the home district. / Essay III: This paper uses Swedish and Finnish municipal data to investigate the effect of changes in voter turnout on the tax rate, public spending and vote-shares. A reform in Sweden in 1970, which overall lowered the cost of voting, is applied as an instrument for voter turnout in local elections. The reform increased voter turnout in Sweden. The higher voter turnout resulted in higher municipal taxes and greater per capita local public spending. There are also indications that higher turnout decreased the vote share for right-wing parties. I use an individual survey data set to conclude that it was in particular low income earners that began to vote to a greater extent after the reform. / Essay IV (with Lovisa Persson): In a theoretical model where voters and politicians have different preferences for how much to spend on basic welfare services contra reception services for asylum seekers, we conclude that established politicians that are challenged by right-wing populists will implement a policy with no spending on asylum seekers if the cost is high enough. Additionally, adjustment to right-wing populist policy is more likely when the economy is in a recession. Voters differ in their level of private consumption in such a way that lower private consumption implies higher demand for basic welfare services at the expense of reception of asylum seekers, and thus stronger disposition to support right-wing populist policies. We propose that this within-budget-distributional conflict can arise as an electorally decisive conflict dimension if parties have converged to the median voter on the size-of-government issue.

This paper discusses the influence of religious aspects in rural thought and how they played in the activities of agrarian movements and farm protest movements. The religious orientations of major agrarian reformers in Texas is discussed, as well as the similarities between Protestant religious institutions and agrarian institutions, specifically the Farmers' Alliance and People's Party of Texas.

En retraçant le parcours intellectuel de l’historien, moraliste et critique américain Christopher Lasch, ce mémoire vise à mettre en exergue la pertinence et les subtilités de sa pensée politique. Sur la base d’une analyse de ses principaux textes, nous démontrerons, qu’au-delà du pessimisme et du catastrophisme qui lui sont généralement attribués, Lasch porte un regard fécond sur la singularité de l’époque contemporaine. Nous soutiendrons que ses critiques acerbes sur la société et l’individu sont faites, avant tout, dans le but de remédier aux carences morales et sociétales qui auraient engendré un certain idéal libéral progressiste. Selon Lasch, le déploiement continu et illimité de cet idéal est en dissonance avec le caractère essentiellement contingent et conflictuel de la condition humaine. Parallèlement, nous présenterons les incidences psychiques qui se traduisent par une « culture du narcissisme » suscitée notamment par diverses composantes de la société contemporaine. À travers une relecture de la condition humaine, Lasch préconise un correctif idéologique qui est axé sur les notions de limites et d’espoir et qui se trouve au sein de la tradition agraire populiste américaine du 19e siècle. Nous démontrerons ainsi comment ce retour en arrière est entamé dans le but de susciter un renouveau politique et identitaire au sein de la société. L’étude se conclura par une discussion sur la plausibilité de l’idéal populiste, tel que l’entend Lasch, à l’ère du 21e siècle. / By retracing the intellectual journey of the historian, moralist, and American critic Christopher Lasch, this paper aims to highlight the relevance of his critical thought. Based on an analysis of his main texts, it is demonstrated that, rather than the pessimism and catastrophism that is often identified with him, Lasch has a fruitful perspective on the uniqueness of the modern era. His trenchant criticisms of contemporary society and of the individual in it address, first and foremost, the moral and social deficiencies that he believes has been caused by the progressive ideal of liberalism. According to Lasch, the assertion of this ideal is incompatible with the essentially contingent and conflicting nature of the human condition. In parallel, the psychological effects which result from what Lasch calls the “culture of narcissism” will be examined as will Lasch’es alternative, which is based on the notions of limits and hope found in the American agrarian populist tradition of the 19th century. Lasch believes that we must engage in this turn to the past in order to bring out a political renewal of society. The study concludes with a discussion of the plausibility of the populist ideal in the 21st century.

This study concerns political communication in general, and right-wing populist PR in particular. Research shows that the role of mass media in liberal democracies has changed as a result of emerging social- and alternative media. Political parties no longer need news media to spread their agenda, which proves an opportunity for right-wing populist parties to reach a broader audience. This study aims to determine how The Sweden Democrats, as Sweden’s largest right-wing populist party, communicate through the use of PR-activities. Building on existing work on the content of populist communication, this study aims to show not only what the party communicate but also how they communicate. The ambition is to enable a discussion on the possible effects of right-wing populist communication in liberal democracy.   Based on Habermas’ theory of the public sphere, a critical discourse analysis was carried out on two of the Sweden Democrat’s PR-activities. Analysis on the examples demonstrates use of a populist discourse as well as the use of manipulative persuasive strategies. The results indicate that right-wing populist communication have a negative effect on democracy. The Sweden Democrats utilize discontent and fear as a foundation for totalitarian reasoning, through a use of strategy that neglects the value of democracy. Based on the results the public sphere is recommended as a normative vision for political debate. Further research is needed on how right-wing populist parties communicate in Sweden and internationally, as well as how the use of strategic communication can be transformed to better serve democratic politics.

For all but thirteen years of the decades from 1952 to 2017, British Columbia was electorally dominated by the Social Credit Party and its ideological successor, the BC Liberal Party. These organizations represented the interests of business in opposition to the social democratic NDP, which has drawn a core support base from organized labour and the public sector middle class. This thesis frames the Social Credit-BC Liberal political formation as a ruling class bloc that maintained hegemony by switching between distinct rhetorical modes as the political situation required or allowed, with economic austerity, framed as objective necessity, on one hand, and populism, employing overt moralism and down-to-earth posturing, on the other. I posit that both modes operated to mask the class conflict at the heart of the neoliberal project of free markets, public sector reduction, and social atomization that has attained the status of political and economic “common sense” since its policies began to be widely adopted around the world in the late 1970s. After providing a background for the rise of Social Credit in British Columbia under W.A.C. Bennett (premier from 1952-1972), this thesis tracks the continuities and changes of the province’s hegemonic bloc, using welfare policies and poverty discourses as a focus. I consider the party’s transition from a populist one that appealed to the province’s evangelical Christian population to a modernized, neoliberal party under Bill Bennett’s leadership (1975-1986). Exploring the rationales surrounding the cuts to welfare funding enacted under the Social Credit governments of Bill Bennett and Bill Vander Zalm and the BC Liberal government of Gordon Campbell (2001-2011), I analyze how neoliberal and populist styles were employed, what the relationship between the two was, and the extent to which moralism was part of both styles/discourses regarding poverty. I also look at the extent to which the collective solidarity of anti-poverty activists and progressive religious groups was able to push back against neoliberal and populist policies, resisting the individualism that neoliberalism attempts to enforce. In these ways, this thesis seeks to contribute to making neoliberalism a topic of critical political analysis and deliberation at a time when its policies are often framed as non-ideological. / Graduate