The Genesis of Populism in Spain between 2011 and 2013: A Demand-Side Analysis

Abstract

This study analyses the genesis of populism in Spain between 2011 and 2013 within a context of acute economic and institutional crisis.

Focusing on social demand, it enquires whether there are any populist attitudes, from the perspective of ideational theory and using qualitative methodology. The study demonstrates how populist attitudes have a latent, manifest or borderline existence, depending on complex ideological factors. The conclusion is that prior to the appearance of Podemos, there were explicit populist minority attitudes, many of them located in an ambivalent border area.