Abstentionism, populism, and the crisis of democracy

Abstract

Political parties are currently going through a period of deep malaise, both in European democratic countries and in other areas of the world. They in fact seem to be largely disconnected from society, unable to fulfil many of their traditional functions and even their role in bridging the social sphere and the sphere of political power. Thus, if, according to some scholars, political parties have undergone profound changes over time, others have highlighted their redundancy, and others again have even predicted their demise 1 .