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When a Right-Wing Populist Party Inherits a Mass Party Organisation: The Case of EKRE

Author

Listed:
  • Tõnis Saarts

    (School of Governance, Law and Society, Tallinn University, Estonia)

  • Mari-Liis Jakobson

    (School of Governance, Law and Society, Tallinn University, Estonia)

  • Leif Kalev

    (School of Governance, Law and Society, Tallinn University, Estonia)

Abstract

When the Eesti Konservatiivne Rahvaerakond (EKRE, Estonian Conservative People’s Party) took over the defunct but extensive party organisation of the Estonian People’s Union, it placed great emphasis on rebooting and extending the organisation and bringing in new activists. As a result, EKRE has grown into a full-fledged mass party type of organisation with all the characteristics associated to it. Furthermore, it has become the fastest-growing party in Estonia in terms of membership and been notably successful in electoral terms. This article focuses primarily on the question of how EKRE developed a mass party organisation with a strong, ideologically-devoted activist core and a remarkable presence on the ground. The article also demonstrates how the party offers a variety of opportunities for engagement to its members. In contrast to an archetypical right-wing populist party, the decision-making power is somewhat diffused within the party, though the party leader remains the public face and mouthpiece of the party. EKRE’s online engagement strategies have been among the most successful in recent Estonian politics and make the party stand out. The article demonstrates that parties can often revise as well as repurpose the features of the predecessor parties and even build defunct mainstream parties into mass parties with a firm ideological core.

Suggested Citation

  • Tõnis Saarts & Mari-Liis Jakobson & Leif Kalev, 2021. "When a Right-Wing Populist Party Inherits a Mass Party Organisation: The Case of EKRE," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 9(4), pages 354-364.
    • Handle: RePEc:cog:poango:v:9:y:2021:i:4:p:354-364
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nicholas Aylott, 2014. "A Question of Priorities: Candidate Selection in Estonian Political Parties," Journal of Baltic Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(3), pages 321-344, July.
    2. Daniele Albertazzi & Stijn van Kessel, 2021. "Right-Wing Populist Party Organisation Across Europe: The Survival of the Mass-Party? Introduction to the Thematic Issue," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 9(4), pages 224-227.
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