Sovereignist Populism: From Post Fascism to Post Communism - And Back?

Federigo Argentieri
John Cabot University - Rome

Abstract

This paper will elaborate on the origins and main features of the current political trend known as sovereignist (or identitarian) populism, relying on past and contemporary studies ranging from Gino Germani to Yascha Mounk. The latter identified in Argentina’s Peronism the first example of this ruling pattern and elaborated on the level of its kinship and the differences with Mussolini’s fascism, which Perón had known well as military attache to Rome. Interestingly, since 2010 Hungary’s Viktor Orbán was the first to proclaim principles that somehow echoed Perón’s, albeit over 60 years later, endeavoring to have them implemented in a country that had exited recently from Soviet-type communism: in so doing, he is ever more frequently establishing a connection with Horthy’s regime of the 1930’s, which had a close alliance with Mussolini. Irrespective from the point of departure, therefore sovereignist populism appears to be inevitably attracted by fascist(oid) examples and patterns, without however coinciding with them.


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