The Rebirth of Right-Wing Charisma? The Cases of Jean-Marie Le Pen and Vladimir Zhirinovsky

Bibliographic Data

ID19477482
AuthorsRoger Eatwell (corresponding author)
Year2002
Volume3
Issue3
Pages1-23
Publication date2002-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueTotalitarian Movements & Political Religions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1469-0764 • E-ISSN: 1743-9647
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/714005489
OpenAlexW2142712074
LanguageEN
Citations received21

Charisma has often been seen as an important factor in the rise of extreme Right parties, both in the inter-war era and more recently. However, empirical case studies of the two men who have been arguably the most-cited recent 'charismatic' leaders - Jean-Marie Le Pen and Vladimir Zhirinovsky - reveal little evidence for a Weber-like emotional mass bond, largely unconcerned with rational economic issues. Nevertheless, charisma remains a useful analytical concept if it is reconceptualised to refer to: (a) a coterie of affective core supporters rather than mass support; and (b) the way in which some leaders become, especially for less politically-concerned voters, the personification of politics

Charisma · Charismatic authority · Extreme right · Political science · Politics · Right wing · Sociology · Communism, Protests, Social Movements · Italian Fascism and Post-war Society · Law · Populism, Right-Wing Movements

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