How party organization matters: Understanding the ups and downs of radical right-wing populism in Sweden

In analyzing the Swedish case, this paper aims at filling a void in earlier theorizing about the emergence of radical right-wing populist (RRP) parties by showing the impact of organizational factors. First, organizational factors may contribute to our understanding of how favorable opportunity structures arise, in particular how niches emerge in the electoral arena. Secondly, a focus on organizational factors directs our attention to why some newly founded RRP parties may have short-term advantages in maximizing voter support. This is particularly true of parties with a hierarchical or even authoritarian structure and access to external resources, which lessens the dependency on party members⎯while making them especially vulnerable in the longer run. Thirdly, this paper strongly indicates that the relative failure of Swedish RRP parties may depend as much on organizational factors as on the demand side and supply side factors that have been the main focus of earlier research.