Globalization and Automation Fuel Rise of Right-Wing Populism in Europe

This study investigates the impact of economic globalization (specifically trade flows) and technological change (automation) on voting behavior across 15 Western European democracies from 1990 to 2018. It finds that increased international trade strengthens support for right-wing populist parties, while automation boosts backing for extreme right parties. The abstract highlights three key findings:

• Globalization Effects: Trade liberalization is linked to growing support for populist right parties.
• Automation Impact: Technological change enhances popular appeal for these groups.
• Financial Crisis Role: Economic crises strengthen both trade-liberalization's negative impact and automation's positive effect on extreme-right popularity.

The paper emphasizes that social welfare compensation appears ineffective in mitigating these trends.