How Does Populism Endanger Democracy?

Abstract

Chapter 7 examines populist legacies and asks: How does populism endanger democracy? The first part addresses a set of questions about the lessons that can be learnt from our comparative study of populism. What has happened to the countries that experienced populist rule? Which are the particular paths each of them has followed after populist rule? And, do we find any evidence to support the claim that so often makes the rounds in academic and public debate that populism may serve as a “corrective” to democracy? The second part concerns questions on the future of liberal democracy in the face of growing populism. Can liberal democracy survive the populist surge? How?