Abstract
Social dissatisfaction, together with the corresponding political backlash, in a time when European democracies are in economic and political crisis, is one of the central concerns of contemporary political and scholarly debate. A particular focus of scholarly attention has been the support expressed for (populist) radical right parties and movements, which has been increasing rapidly in recent decades.
Citizens increasingly give their support to parties and movements that promote xenophobia, ethno-nationalism, and anti-system populism. 'Movement parties', as a new breed of political actor, have proved successful in mobilising voters in times of crisis. While it has often been noted that parties are important for movements and vice versa, previous research has used the concept of 'movement party' to refer to actors that are in transition from extra-institutional movements to partisan electoral competition 'as their primary vehicle to bring societal interests to bear on policy-making'.