www.iepn.org Right-Wing Populism in Europe and Israel: Common Challenges and Policy Options Barcelona, Spain, 15-16 October 2017 December 2017 Edited by: Dr. Jan Busse, Dr. Rem Korteweg, Dr. Roby Nathanson, Dr. Werner Puschra and Mr. Yanai Weiss The annual European meeting of the Israeli­European Policy Network(IEPN) in Barcelona focused on the rise of right wing populism in Europe and in Israel discussed the causes for this rise and the actions that could be taken to contain its rise. There’s a growing consensus that populism represents an important challenge for traditional parties and democracy as a whole. Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 American presidential elections has been the clearest example of the recent rise of right-wing populism across Western states. Other expressions have been, for instance, the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom and the Italian referendum of the same year. Right-wing populists have been successful in mobilising popular discontent with the political establishment and elites, and presenting themselves as the only alternative that speaks on behalf of‘the population’. So doing, right-wing populists challenge existing democratic institutions and embrace referenda and direct democracy as instruments to promote their agenda. The populist movement thrives when the duality between democracy and politics becomes more prominent. Whereas democracy possesses a positive connotation in public debate, politics has negative or even pejorative implications. One of the roots of populism lies in the distinction between“them” and “us”, often distinguishing political elites(them) from the people(us). Populism can be therefore defined as politics telling people what they want to hear, so that populists make unfulfillable promises. One important misperception lies in the claim that the people is a coherent unit. Rather, the population is very diverse. Also, populists are often seen to question the Euro­Atlantic consensus built around the EU and NATO, and the principles of the liberal international order. They rely on half-truths, amplified through social media in general and Twitter specifically. That is, the capacity for manipulation by right-wing populists is supported by social media. Moreover, collective emotions play an important role for populism as voters only listen to what they want to hear. Populism is mainly considered as an anti­institutional technique rather than an ideology. It is important to note that populist movements are not confined only to right wing nationalist parties. Populist movements can also be found on the left side of the political map or could wear a transnational shape. The unifying force of all the shapes populist movements wear is the threat that they pose for parliamentary democracy. Surely, the recent success of right wing populism is highly correlated to cultural, economic, or structural factors(such as the electoral system. That is, the American electoral system makes it easier for populists, as populist needs only to win several key states and not neccerely are depended on the popular vote), as well as anti-immigration sentiments. The issue of what caused the rise of right-wing populism requires further examination in the near future, but it is already possible to share insights and compare lessons learned between the Israeli and European examples. In addition, the progressive and social-democratic camps around the world have been particularly vulnerable to the rise of right-wing populism. They should organize to formulate strategies for how to 111