Populism by the rules?: A study of the radical right in presidential governments and its  (constitutional) confrontation with non-majoritarian institutions

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Political Science (MSc)

Campos, Felipe (2024)

Populism by the rules? A study of the radical right in presidential governments and its (constitutional) confrontation with non-majoritarian institutions

Master thesis | Political Science (MSc)

This thesis explores how the populist radical right seeks to control non-majoritarian liberal institutions through democratic means. Specifically, I test this theory within presidential systems, examining whether a radical right government leads to an increase in legislative proposals that target the disempowerment of constitutional courts. Therefore, my hypothesis is that the number of legislative bills aiming to overcome the autonomy of constitutional courts is higher under populist radical right governments than under non-radical ones. I employ a mixed-method approach, starting with four longitudinal quantitative research and then applying in-depth analyses conducted in Brazil, El Salvador, the Philippines, and the United States to compare instances of radical right governance with those of previous non-radical coalitions in each country. The results generally support the hypothesis, except for a notable deviant case observed in the United States.

Populism

radical right

presidentialism

constitutional courts

The Philippines. The United States

Bolsonaro

Bukele

Duterte