Window Dressing? The Mainstreaming Strategy of the Rassemblement National in Power in French Local Government

Abstract

Populist radical right (PRR) parties have increasingly occupied positions of power in recent years, inspiring much scholarly interest in the mainstreaming consequences of government responsibility. This article analyses the extent and manner of mainstreaming of the Rassemblement National (RN) while in power at the local level of government in France. A municipal-level focus enables the novel inclusion of the party into the debate about the consequences of government participation for the PRR. We conduct a paired case study analysis of RN-led Hénin-Beaumont, the political base of Marine Le Pen and her ‘de-demonization’ strategy, alongside nearby Lens, which is led by a mainstream party. We analyse the policy and discourse of the administration through a qualitative content analysis of mayoral statements and data from semi-structured interviews with local politicians. The results show a partial mainstreaming due to the strategic exercise of local government power to present a more moderate and capable image, as well as the use of populist discourse to frame mainstream opposition forces and the local press as working against the interests of ‘the people’.

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With a Little Help from Their Friends: The Consequences of Populists in National Government for Policymaking in Local Government

“…Third, while existing research shows the important role played by subnational politics for party mobilization, this article shows how populist parties also use local government as a policy 'showcase'. This article builds on existing studies of such use of the local arena by PRR parties (Paxton and Peace 2020), with the analysis of the mechanisms by which policy influence is transmitted across government levels. Fourth, the article points towards the wider ramifications of this multilevel strategy for PRR parties.…”

The Three Faces of Populism in Power: Polity, Policies and Politics

“…radical) in their programme after electoral successes, which normally results in electoral losses (Heinisch 2003; Rooduijn et al 2014). However, the so-called inclusion–moderation thesis is not always confirmed (Akkerman et al 2016): whereas some studies show a mainstreaming of populist parties in government (Drápalová and Wegrich 2020; Paxton and Peace 2021), other scholars stress the opposite, namely radicalization (see the concept of ‘negative integration’, Zulianello 2020) or ideological flexibility which follows the electorate's preferences (Bartha et al 2020). Existing findings are predominantly related to right-wing or exclusionary cases (Zaslove 2012), since there are only a few and recent left-wing or inclusionary populist parties in government (e.g.…”