The Politics of "Place": Community and Individual Economic Perceptions in Anti-System and Right Populist Views in France
Abstract
This paper examines the role of sociotropic and egotropic perceptions in driving support for anti-system parties, focusing on the rise of the far-right Front National (FN) in France. Using 20 years of survey data from the Enquête interrégional des phénomènes politiques, I find that both sociotropic perceptions—concerns about regional economic decline—and egotropic concerns—personal economic hardship—significantly shape political de-attachment and support for the FN. I also find that the interaction between these two perceptions strengthens the likelihood of supporting populist parties. Additionally, an original survey experiment investigates how voters in economically lagging regions react to programmatic and anti-system cues. The experiment shows that voters in high-unemployment regions are more likely to support outsider candidates, suggesting that non-programmatic mechanisms are important in explaining populist support, particularly among politically de-attached voters. These findings contribute to the ongoing debate on the relative importance of economic and cultural explanations for populism by highlighting the role of community-level perceptions and the non-programmatic appeal of outsider candidates in shaping voting behavior. This study underscores the need to further explore the role of sociotropic perceptions in driving political behavior in the context of regional economic decline.
