Triadic Institutionalization of the Contemporary Far Right: Interactions Between Party, Movement, and Leadership

Year 2025, Volume: 9 Issue: 1, 71 - 92

Celal Oral Özdemir

https://doi.org/10.47478/lectio.1753297

Abstract

This study analyzes the rise of the far right, which began with the 2008 global financial crisis, not simply as an ideological reaction but through a triadic institutional framework focusing on the dynamic interaction between parties, movements, and leaders. It argues that the core mechanism behind the far right’s success is a symbiotic, feedback-driven process of institutionalization involving these three elements: In this model, the party provides institutional resources while the movement mobilizes grassroots energy and street legitimacy. The leader, in turn, binds these two elements with charismatic authority, becoming the architect of reality in a post-truth political environment. Adopting qualitative and theoretical methodologies, this study analyzes the modes of reproduction of the contemporary far right by synthesizing concepts from theorists such as Laclau, Mouffe, Rancière, Tilly, and Weber. It is argued that leaders elevated by social movements and political parties subsequently acquire the power to transform both the party and the movement, and even to establish reality. It is argued that with this power, the far right can reshape democratic institutions from within. This triadic analysis aims to offer a new conceptual tool to the literature by explaining how the far right can maintain an anti-institutional discourse while simultaneously institutionalizing itself in three steps.

Keywords

far right , political parties , social movement , leader , neo-authoritarianism

Ethical Statement

No ethical approval was necessary for this research, as it did not involve human subjects, animal experiments, or any procedures requiring institutional review.

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