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The Changing Discourses of EU Enlargement: A Longitudinal Analysis of National Parliamentary Debates

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  • Spyros Economides
  • Kevin Featherstone
  • Tom Hunter

Abstract

Domestic support for EU enlargement across existing member states is understood to have shifted significantly since 2004. But, how? Here, we explore how enlargement has been framed discursively in the national parliaments of eight member states. Our dataset comprises over 18,000 statements from 1989 to 2019. We link our exploration to alternative explanations for change: IR‐based shifts in how applicant states are perceived and, from comparative politics, the ‘politicisation’ of EU membership in domestic party systems. We analyse changes in salience, sentiment and thematic foci. Our results confirm shifts in the perceptions of individual applicant states over time and an increased concern with issues of ‘identity’ in relation to enlargement. We find that whilst salience has declined, sentiment has turned negative and explore the distinctive discourses of ‘challenger parties’ in this regard.

Suggested Citation

  • Spyros Economides & Kevin Featherstone & Tom Hunter, 2024. "The Changing Discourses of EU Enlargement: A Longitudinal Analysis of National Parliamentary Debates," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(1), pages 168-185, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jcmkts:v:62:y:2024:i:1:p:168-185
    DOI: 10.1111/jcms.13484
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