Splintering Centrism in European Parties

• In Event: Political Parties in Comparative Perspectives

Abstract

For the last two decades, literature has exploded over the rise of radical and extreme parties across the European continent. The focus is on how the mainstream parties have either (1) failed to provide clear policy options for voters to endorse regarding their future, (2) cannot incorporate enough of the electorate to be “big tent” enough to prevent voters from choosing extreme alternatives (3) are ill equipped to face the crises Europe is seemingly always facing. However, these explanations do not account for the fact that centrist parties while typically two large blocs in European parties, have themselves splintered. The hypothesis is that the flourishing of more centrist parties dilutes the concentration in the traditional center-left and center-right dichotomy. This in turn promotes the idea that radical extreme parties are on the rise. This paper argues that centrist parties are in fact not on the decline because more choices exist for voters. Data used from 2010 to present supports this position.

Author

• Steve Jurek, SUNY Brockport