The Many Faces of Populism in Italy: The Northern League and Berlusconism

Abstract

In this chapter, I examine the populism of the Northern League and Berlusconi. I attempt to provide an institutional explanation as to why Italy, more so than other Western European democracies, has experienced such diverse forms of populism. Stated in full, the thesis advanced is that the rise and persistence populism in Western European democracies, such as Italy, is an indication of an institutional crisis of representation.

Citation

Woods, D. (2014), "The Many Faces of Populism in Italy: The Northern League and Berlusconism", The Many Faces of Populism: Current Perspectives (Research in Political Sociology, Vol. 22), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 27-51. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0895-993520140000022000