Populism Still Matters

Populism Still MattersPopulism is, without a doubt, popular.The term is widely used in public discourse, often embraced by political actors themselves, sometimes even with pride.But it has also become increasingly popular in the social sciences. Perhaps even too popular?A quick search in Scopus reveals an interesting trend.Looking for the term "populism" (in English only), we find that until around 2008, fewer than 100 articles per year included it in their title, abstract, or keywords.From that point onward, the number grew steadily, reaching over 2,000 articles in 2024.We all know what happened in between: the global financial crisis, the so-called migration crisis, Brexit, the election of Trump, and the rise of actors and movements often labeled as populist across multiple regions.This period saw not only the proliferation of populist politics, but also a boom in scholarly interest and in the use of "populism" as a concept for interpreting these developments.So, as we take over the editorship of a journal called Populism, a natural question arises: what is left to say about populism at this stage?Is there anything new to explore?Critics might argue that the term has become so inflated that everything is populism, and therefore nothing really is.We believe otherwise.Populism remains a crucial topic in the social sciences and humanities, and this journal is here to demonstrate that.Founded in 2017 and led until now by Lane Crothers, Populism has served as a valuable intellectual platform for following the evolution of research on populism across political and social science disciplines.The journal's central premise remains highly relevant: there is no single or unified framework for analyzing populism.While most scholars agree that populism involves an antagonistic relationship between "the people" and "the elites," consensus largely ends there.Beyond this basic definition, as a concept, as a field of inquiry, and as a lens for understanding the social, political, and cultural changes of our time.