The Russian threat and the consolidation of the West: How populism and EU-skepticism shape party support for Ukraine

Liesbet Hooghe, Gary Marks, Ryan Bakker, Seth Jolly, Jonathan Polk, Jan Rovny, Marco Steenbergen and Milada Anna Vachudova
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Liesbet Hooghe: Department of Political Science, 2331University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Gary Marks: Department of Political Science, 2331University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Ryan Bakker: Department of Government, 2591University of Essex, Colchester, UK
Seth Jolly: Political Science, 2029Syracuse University, Syracuse, USA
Jonathan Polk: 166452Political Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
Jan Rovny: Institut d'Etudes Politiques & Centre d'études européennes and LIEPP, Sciences Po, Paris, France
Marco Steenbergen: Department of Political Science, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
Milada Anna Vachudova: Department of Political Science, 2331University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

European Union Politics, 2024, vol. 25, issue 3, 459-482

Abstract: Support for Ukraine against Russian aggression has been strong across Europe, but it is far from uniform. An expert survey of the positions taken by political parties in 29 countries conducted mid-2023 reveals that 97 of 269 parties reject one or more of the following: providing weapons, hosting refugees, supporting Ukraine's path to European Union membership, or accepting higher energy costs. Where the perceived threat from Russia is most severe, we find the greatest levels of support for Ukraine. However, ideology appears to be far more influential. The level of a party's populist rhetoric and its European Union skepticism explain the bulk of variation in support for Ukraine despite our finding that many strongly populist and European Union-skeptical parties take moderate pro-Ukraine positions when in government.

Keywords: European Union; populism; political parties; Russia; Ukraine (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:eeupol:v:25:y:2024:i:3:p:459-482

DOI: 10.1177/14651165241237136

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