Is populism a threat to democracy or a force for democratisation?

Rather than condemning populism we may be better served by seeking strategies for democratic resilience informed by the lessons populism offers.

✍ @ygursoy.bsky.social & @toygarsinanbaykan.bsky.social
blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2...

Our article, “The Frenemy Within: Populism’s Dual Role in Democratization”, with @toygarsinanbaykan.bsky.social
in @democratization.bsky.social
is now available on @lseeuroppblog.bsky.social as a blog post blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2... @lse-ei.bsky.social

Excited to share my latest co-authored article with @toygarsinanbaykan.bsky.social in @democratization.bsky.social
“The Frenemy Within: Populism’s Dual Role in Democratization”
We explore how populism can both revive and erode democracy.
🔗 tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
@lse-ei.bsky.social

6-The local path to democratic revival in Turkey is promising but full of internal and external challenges for the CHP. The success of this route to re-democratization in Turkey depends on how the CHP responds to these challenges and built a convincing “performance” record for national elections.

5-They need to satisfy the particularistic demands of their core constituencies that were long-denied the fruits of power as well as the needs of the wider public. At the same time, they should be prepared to be cornered judicially and financially by the authoritarian incumbents.

4-However, under hybrid regimes based on widespread clientelism and politicized judicial and bureaucratic institutions, opposition parties encounter a “dual challenge” when they come to power:

3-Better candidate selection through professionalized methods as well as the coherence of local party branches combined with smart and locally tailored electoral campaigns and coalitions helped the CHP win municipal posts in 2024 in many inconvenient settings across Turkey.

2-Our research revealed that, instead of broad national electoral alliances, what we call “strategic localism” can help opposition parties win elections and pave a way to democratic revival in political regimes under the control of seasoned autocrats.

1-Our work is based on a fieldwork including interviews with local party executives and members as well as on-site observations in six different local contexts won by the CHP in 2024 local elections which were previously deemed as strongholds of Erdoğan’s AKP.

We are pleased to announce the publication of our joint work with @makrevis.bsky.social, Ladin Bayurgil and Aytuğ Şaşmaz on CHP’s local election victory in 2024 and its consequences for the CHP and regime transformations in Türkiye in @jodemocracy.bsky.social
muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/articl...

Great fieldwork in 6 districts won by the CHP in the 2024 Turkish local elections and which have long been in the hands of the government and its allies. The authors observed a recalibrated form of strategic localism, with the construction of inclusive coalitions.
muse.jhu.edu/article/9645...

www.imge.com.tr/urun/politik...

Birikim Sayı 434 - Haziran 2025 url:https://birikimdergisi.com/dergiler/birikim/1/sayi-434-haziran-2025/10189

politicsrights.com/populism-gov...