How Populist Parties Use Accountability Claims Against the EU

• In Event: Populism, Power, Accountability, and Opposition (Pre-Recorded)

Abstract

Over the recent decades, the growing empowerment of the institutions of the European Union (EU) has raised concerns about their accountability. The various crises of the past decade triggered public criticism of the increased power of EU institutions and led to a popular conclusion that the EU institutions gained responsibility without the necessary and proper mechanisms of accountability over time. At the same time, the EU has witnessed the spread of populist movements within its member states. While it has been highlighted before that the European integration process serves as a perfect scapegoat for populists given its elite-driven and international nature, far fewer studies have investigated the substantive accusations directly. Against this background, we examine when and how populist parties in the national parliaments use an ‘EU accountability deficit’ frame to criticize the EU and indirectly contribute to growing Euroscepticism at the national level. Through the comparison of five countries (Denmark, Germany, Hungary, and the United Kingdom) with strong populist parties (Dansk Folkeparti, Alternative für Deutschland, Fidesz, Lega Nord / Lega, and the United Kingdom Independence Party respectively), our research aims to map the nexus between populism, accountability, and the EU integration process through the combination of the corresponding literature.

Authors

• Eugenia M. da Conceicao-Heldt, Technical University Munich

• Robert Csehi, Bavarian School of Public Policy at the Technical University Munich