Professors Catherine de Vries and Sara Hobolt write about the rise of the Challenger parties

Catherine De Vries and former DPIR member Sara Hobolt have written an article for the centre left think tank Policy Network on the rise of popularity throughout Europe of previously non-mainstream parties.

They write, "European democracies are undergoing a transformation. The major parties of the left and the right that have dominated politics of decades are losing ground… In parallel to the decline of established political parties and an overall erosion of the “old politics” of left and right, we are witnessing another trend, namely the rise of challenger parties. Challenger parties highlight issues such as European integration and immigration that have often been downplayed by the mainstream, and foster new linkages with voters that feel left behind by established parties."

The full article can be read here: http://www.policy-network.net/pno_detail.aspx?ID=5025&title=Challenger-parties-and-the-decline-of-the-European-left

Professor Sara Hobolt is now Sutherland Chair in European Institutions at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and an associated member of Nuffield College, Oxford.