Authoritarian Populism and Countermovements
This research aims to understand the nature of popular support for Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian governance and to reveal the objective and subjective factors that shape political views and preferences of ‘ordinary Russians’ – conservative residents of small towns, suburbs, and villages – who are the main supporters of Putin’s regime. This project shows how historical legacies are employed in the state-society relations in contemporary Russia and contributes to a better understanding of the rising authoritarian populism in Russia and globally.
Authoritarian populism has been spreading across the world. Its main features are a coercive, disciplinary state, a rhetoric of national interests, populist unity between ‘the people’ and an authoritarian leader, nostalgia for ‘past glories’ and confrontations with ‘Others’ at home and/or abroad. The rise of authoritarian populism is primarily linked to the recent political events, such as Donald Trump’s election, the Brexit referendum, Erdoğan’s power grab in Turkey, and the entry of right-wing political parties into many European parliaments. Meanwhile, in Russia, a similar type of governance has existed for quite some time. This research aims to understand the nature of popular support for Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian governance and to assess the stability of the existing regime in Russia. I apply the framework of ‘naive monarchism’ – the traditional tsarist myths in ‘the benevolent tsar’ and ‘loyal peasants’. These myths were maintained by the tsar for purposes of social control, and used by peasants in their grievances to exploit divisions within officialdom and shield themselves from repressions. Naive monarchism was the backbone of Tsardom and has re-emerged in Putin’s Russia. This project shows how historical legacies are employed in the state-society relations in contemporary Russia and contributes to a better understanding of the rising authoritarian nationalist politics and ideology in Russia and globally.
Project members: Natalia Mamonova
Publications:
‘Actually existing’ right-wing populism in rural Europe: insights from eastern Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom and Ukraine, Mamonova, N., Franquesa, J., Brooks, S., The Journal of Peasant Studies, October 2020.
Special Issue: Right‐Wing Populism in Rural Europe, Eds. Natalia Mamonova, Jaume Franquesa, Sociologia Ruralis, Voulume 60 Issue 4, October 2020.
Right‐wing populism in rural Europe. (Introduction to the Special Issue) Mamonova, N., Franquesa, J., Sociologia Ruralis Special Issue, May 2020.
Alternatives to Rural Right-Wing Populism in Europe, Mamonova, N., Agricultrual and Rural Convention (Arc2020), May 2020.
Prospects of Agrarian Populism and Food Sovereignty Movement in Post‐socialist Romania. Hajdu, A. and Mamonova N., Sociologia Ruralis, April 2020.
Populism, neoliberalism and agrarian movements in Europe. Understanding rural support for right-wing politics and looking for progressive solutions. Mamonova, N., Franquesa, J. Sociologia Ruralis, November 2019.
Understanding the silent majority in authoritarian populism: What can we learn from popular support for Putin in the rural Russia? Mamonova, N. The Journal of
Peasant Studies, March 2019.
Right-Wing Populism and Counter-Movements in Rural Europe. Mamonova, N. Agricultrual and Rural Convention (ARC2020), February 2019.
Vladimir Putin and the rural roots of authoritarian populism in Russia. Blogpost i Open Democracy, April 2018.
Patriotism, Food Sovereignty & Contemporary Ukraine. Agricultrual and Rural Convention (ARC2020), February 2018.
Patriotism and Food Sovereignty: Changes in the Social Imaginary of Small‐Scale Farming in Post‐Euromaidan Ukraine. Sociologia Ruralis, December 2017.