The Revolt Against Liberal Democracy

National Populism

A SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 
 
A crucial new guide to one of the most urgent political phenomena of our time: the rise of national populism 
 
Across the West, there is a rising tide of people who feel excluded, alienated from mainstream politics, and increasingly hostile towards minorities, immigrants and neo-liberal economics. Many of these voters are turning to national populist movements, which have begun to change the face of Western liberal democracy, from the United States to France, Austria to the UK. 
 
This radical turn, we are told, is a last howl of rage from an aging electorate on the verge of extinction. Their leaders are fascistic and their politics anti-democratic; their existence a side-show to liberal democracy. But this version of events, as Roger Eatwell and Matthew Goodwin show, could not be further from the truth. 
 
Written by two of the foremost experts on fascism and the rise of national populism, this lucid and deeply-researched book is a vital guide to our transformed political landscape. Challenging conventional wisdoms, Eatwell and Goodwin make a compelling case for serious, respectful engagement with the supporters and ideas of national populism - not least because it is a tide that won't be stemmed anytime soon.

Compelling ... Eatwell and Goodwin do a good job of demolishing lazy stereotypes about Trump and Brexit supporters being almost exclusively white and old ... Measured and insightful

A fascinating new study ... the authors analyse the long-term demographic and socioeconomic trends shaping our age of upheaval. The attraction of this book lies in its cool, dispassionate tone. The authors intend to explain and inform rather than polemicise

Intelligent, counterintuitive ... [ranging] far beyond Brexit and Britain ... they put a parochial debate in a much bigger context

Valuable ... A finely organised, lucid explanation of the elements presently constituting the most dynamic political movements in Europe and the US

A useful corrective... it demolishes the myth that young people aren't attracted to the populist right

A reality check to any clinging to the hope that populism is a passing political squall ... Goodwin is one of the few academics to be vindicated by the political trends of the past few years. With a forensic grasp of the detail, Eatwell and Goodwin show how commentators have succumbed to "stereotypes that correspond with their outlook" rather than evidence-based conclusions

Convincing, powerful and very definitely worth a read

Robert Colvile, Director of CPS Think Tank

An important and stimulating book .. well written, well argued, highly accessible to the lay reader, and mercifully free of political science jargon ... it leaves room for optimism for the future of our country

An invaluable guide to the new politics of revolt ... Eatwell and Goodwin draw attention to the historic problem that liberalism has faced in accepting democracy. They give us the theoretical framework to understand national populism's rise ... Compelling

Informative and often compelling, providing clarity around a number of key debates within political science and political theory [...] Usefully, they provide copious evidence that rightwing populism has been a long time in the making.

Unlike other authors, they do not write to warn and condemn, but to understand the movement ... Populist leaders are confrontational, mendacious and ruthless -- but those who follow them need to have their fears, resentments and beliefs addressed

Superb ... one of the best of the post-Trump analyses

Eatwell and Goodwin rightly point out that the UK's political and economic system is, for many people, broken

Readers may feel threatened by a rising tide of populism, but what, exactly, is it? National Populism offers penetrating and emancipating answers

The Times Literary Supplement, Books of the Year 2019

Roger Eatwell is Emeritus Professor of Politics at the University of Bath. He has published widely on fascism and populism, including Fascism: a History. 
 
Matthew J. Goodwin is Professor of Politics at the University of Kent and a Senior Fellow at Chatham House. He has published five books, including Brexit: Why Britain Voted to Leave the European Union and the Paddy Power Political Book of the Year 2015 (for Revolt on the Right: Explaining Support for the Radical Right in Britain). He writes regularly for The New York Times, the Financial Times and Politico, and has worked with more than 200 organisations on issues relating to political volatility in the West. He lives in London.

A crucial new guide to one of the most urgent political phenomena of our time: the rise of national populism 
 
Across the West, there is a rising tide of people who feel excluded, alienated from mainstream politics, and increasingly hostile towards minorities, immigrants and neo-liberal economics. Many of these voters are turning to national populist movements, which have begun to change the face of Western liberal democracy, from the United States to France, Austria to the UK. 
 
This radical turn, we are told, is a last howl of rage from an aging electorate on the verge of extinction. Their leaders are fascistic and their politics anti-democratic; their existence a side-show to liberal democracy. But this version of events, as Roger Eatwell and Matthew Goodwin show, could not be further from the truth. 
 
Written by two of the foremost experts on fascism and the rise of national populism, this lucid and deeply-researched book is a vital guide to our transformed political landscape. Challenging conventional wisdoms, Eatwell and Goodwin make a compelling case for serious, respectful engagement with the supporters and ideas of national populism - not least because it is a tide that won't be stemmed anytime soon.

Matthew Goodwin

A single missile laser-targeted at a careless, feckless ruling elite who have ignored the wants and wills of the vast majority of voters ... The fundamental thrust of Goodwin's argument is right. ... a new centre ground of British politics is being formed - even if both parties have yet to fully comprehend it.

A much-needed corrective. It gives voice to those whose values are scarcely heard or represented by the media ... impassioned and convincing.

Goodwin's central thesis is that the rise of the radical right, the Brexit referendum and Johnson's general election victory of 2019 are expressions of a deeper realignment in UK politics that pits the marginalised white working class, socially conservative older voters and the 'non-graduate majority' against a new elite of university-educated progressives.

The most consistent chronicler of events that have upturned the UK several times ... there is much to recommend it as an antidote against the madness of our times.

Well-written and cogently argued ... [Goodwin] understands the broad forces that spurred the surprising changes and tumult in the politics of the West, and he writes about them without villainizing or heroizing ... a crucial one to read.

This book is a valuable read for understanding better the cause of our recent democratic upheavals.

Hot property... [from] an insightful author and a trendsetting 'entrepreneurial academic', combining his scholarly work with writing punchy op-eds and making his case on TV and radio.

Goodwin is angry on behalf of the white working class. He wants a political programme that offers them more protection from the gales of international economic competition and from the erosion of their socially conservative values.

The New British Politics

Over the last decade, Britain has been rocked by a series of political revolts. The rise of national populism, the vote for Brexit, Boris Johnson's emphatic 2019 election victory, the fall of Labour's Red Wall, the emergence of a very different brand of conservatism and the mayhem around 'The Year of Three Prime Ministers' have all outflanked the country's liberal establishment and stunned the world. In trying to make sense of this remarkable churn and change, many commentators cling to very short-term and unconvincing explanations, pointing to social media, dark money, individual leaders, or the promises made to voters. 
 
But, as acclaimed political scientist Matthew Goodwin reveals in this strikingly original study, this turbulence has been a long time in the making - and it is set to continue for many years to come. Embarking on a profound and wide-ranging analysis of postwar British politics, Goodwin shows how these revolts are all symptomatic of deeper shifts that are now rapidly reshaping our political world. He points to the rise of three new drivers over 'values', 'voice' and 'virtue', and shows how these uniquely powerful divides are now pushing us into a new era of political volatility.

Matthew Goodwin

Praise for Values, Voice and Virtue

A single missile laser-targeted at a careless, feckless ruling elite who have ignored the wants and wills of the vast majority of voters ... The fundamental thrust of Goodwin's argument is right. ... a new centre gr ...

A much-needed corrective. It gives voice to those whose values are scarcely heard or represented by the media ... impassioned and convincing.

Goodwin's central thesis is that the rise of the radical right, the Brexit referendum and Johnson's general election victory of 2019 are expressions of a deeper realignment in UK politics that pits the marginalised ...

A single missile laser-targeted at a careless, feckless ruling elite who have ignored the wants and wills of the vast majority of voters ... The fundamental thrust of Goodwin's argument is right. ... a new centre gr ...

A much-needed corrective. It gives voice to those whose values are scarcely heard or represented by the media ... impassioned and convincing.

Goodwin's central thesis is that the rise of the radical right, the Brexit referendum and Johnson's general election victory of 2019 are expressions of a deeper realignment in UK politics that pits the marginalised ...

A single missile laser-targeted at a careless, feckless ruling elite who have ignored the wants and wills of the vast majority of voters ... The fundamental thrust of Goodwin's argument is right. ... a new centre gr ...

A much-needed corrective. It gives voice to those whose values are scarcely heard or represented by the media ... impassioned and convincing.

Goodwin's central thesis is that the rise of the radical right, the Brexit referendum and Johnson's general election victory of 2019 are expressions of a deeper realignment in UK politics that pits the marginalised ...

Books by Matthew Goodwin

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