The Recent Rise of Populism and European Integration

The rise of populism in the twenty-first century—especially in its second decade and particularly in Europe—has been unprecedented, whether measured by the populists’ vote share in elections or the number of countries with populists in government. This rise could be partly explained by the spread of mobile broadband internet and social media, partly by the secular trends of globalisation and automation, but also by Europe’s policy mistakes in handling the global financial crisis 2008–09 and its aftermath—as well as in handling the immigration crisis in 2015–16. Europe has learned from the century’s second decade and managed the Covid pandemic and integration of Ukrainian refugees in a much better way. The comparison sheds light on which European integration policies increase vulnerability to populism and which policies help Europe withstand it. We also discuss the implications of the rise of populism for European integration.