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While economic issues are increasingly salient in political mobilization by European radical right-wing populist parties, we are still in need of a definition of these parties' economic positions. This paper argues that the economic supply of radical right populist parties is best characterized by a mix of economic populism and sovereigntism, which forms the basis of a common mobilization frame. Economic populism refers to defence of the economic prosperity of the 'heartland' against the elite and immigrants. Economic sovereigntism is seen, on the other hand, as a means of restoring the people's well-being and the nation's prosperity. To illustrate this argument, we conduct a qualitative analysis of five established European populist radical right parties. We demonstrate that, despite different socioeconomic stances, all parties under scrutiny share a common economic populist sovereigntist frame which claims to defend the self-identified economic interests and well-being of the people. We discuss the implications of our research for the broader understanding of populist mobilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a case study of the French Front National (FN), this paper examines the territorialization of national-populist parties. We adopt a sub-national approach and ask to which extent the FN engages in different ideological and organizational strategies to take advantage of territorialized opportunities. We draw on a comparative qualitative analysis of two emblematic French regions with the highest electoral returns for the FN, namely Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and Hauts-de-France. We find that the FN is adapting its supply of national-populism to different arenas and contexts where cultural and economic issues vary in salience and in the resonance they find in the political process. In doing so, the FN seems to be successfully meeting the needs and interests of the local constituencies that it targets. However, this may produce greater ideological and organizational heterogeneity, possibly hampering the party’s electoral prospects nationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper engages in a comparative analysis of the economic positions of radical right‐wing populist parties in Western Europe. Following Ennser‐Jedenastik ( ), we argue that those parties’ political economy is best captured in terms of the nativist, populist and authoritarian features of their core ideology, each of which produces a specific set of economic policies independent from the issue of government intervention in the economy. On basis of an analysis of the election manifestos of seven radical right‐wing populist parties in Western Europe in the period 2005‐2015, we argue that those parties share similarities in their economic nativism, authoritarianism and populism, whilst their positions on the traditional role of the state in the economy are more diverse. The findings indicate also a unified ‘nativist’ response to the global financial crisis both in terms of welfare chauvinism and economic protectionism. We discuss the role of internal and external factors in explaining the economic profile of radical right‐wing populist parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the performance and party system diffusion of Euroscepticism of the French Front National (FN) during recent European crises. The article argues that Europe’s successive crises since 2008 have been essentially ‘absorbed’ by the FN into its existing Eurosceptic framework which is guided by its radical right-wing ideology. While allowing the FN to successfully mobilize issues and grievances about the European Union (EU), Euroscepticism is, however, significantly impeding its strategy of governmental credibility. The article identifies the main political outcomes of these crises and finds differences in impact between the different EU crises on party competition over Europe. These findings provide insight into the relationship between the radical Right, Euroscepticism, and party competition. They also inform our current knowledge of Euroscepticism in French politics, and changes that EU crises have triggered, according to party system location and whether FN influence can be postulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Front National (FN) has made an impressive come back into France's electoral politics since 2012. Adopting a supply-side approach, this article places the electoral rejuvenation of the FN in the context of the global crisis and looks at how the party has adapted programmatically to socio-economic demands emerging from this context. On the basis of manifesto data analysis, we find that despite having recently broadened its economic programme, the FN maintains a niche status in the party system. Our findings show, however, that the party has significantly shifted its economic platform, moving from a predominantly right-wing to a left-wing location since the mid-1980s. This move is characterized by an increase in egalitarian and nationalist economic policies, espousing also a populist framework. The reconfiguration of the FN suggests that the party may have moved to a pivotal position in recent years by converging around the economic preferences of the median voter. We discuss the role of internal and external factors in explaining the economic policy shift by the FN, and consider possible implications of our findings for understanding current populist radical right electoral dynamics in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview and characterisation of the rejection of the European Constitutional Treaty by a majority of voters in France's referendum held on 29 May 2005. Whilst pointing to the salience of political discontent with the incumbent right-wing government and some elements of the longstanding crisis in French national party politics, the analysis places the emphasis on the central role played by social issues in the referendum, the transposition at the European level of the mechanism of the evaluation by voters of traditional parties' performances and responsiveness to the country's social malaise and the unilateral termination by a majority of left-wing voters of the ‘social welfare and economic growth’ confidence pact that they had made with their national political elites on the occasion of the Maastricht referendum in 1992. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]