Download full text
(external source)
Citation Suggestion
Please use the following Persistent Identifier (PID) to cite this document:
https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v9i3.4261
Exports for your reference manager
Political Reactionism as Affective Practice: UKIP Supporters and Non-Voters in Pre-Brexit England
[journal article]
Abstract United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) supporters and non-voters in England participate respectively in forms of engaged and disengaged anti-political activity, but the role of individual, group-based, and collective emotions is still unclear. Drawing upon recent analyses of the complex emotional ... view more
United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) supporters and non-voters in England participate respectively in forms of engaged and disengaged anti-political activity, but the role of individual, group-based, and collective emotions is still unclear. Drawing upon recent analyses of the complex emotional dynamics (e.g., ressentiment) underpinning the growth of right-wing populist political movements and support for parties such as UKIP, this analysis explores the affective features of reactionary political stances. The framework of affective practices is used to show how resentful affects are created, facilitated, and transformed in sharing or suppressing populist political views and practices; that is, populism is evident not only in the prevalence and influence of illiberal and anti-elite discourses but also should be explored as it is embodied and enacted in "past focused" and "change resistant" everyday actions and in relation to opportunities that "sediment" affect-laden political positions and identities. Reflexive thematic analysis of data from qualitative interviews with UKIP voters and non-voters (who both supported leaving the EU) in 2015 after the UK election but before the EU referendum vote showed that many participants: 1) shared "condensed" complaints about politics and enacted resentment towards politicians who did not listen to them, 2) oriented towards shameful and purportedly shameless racism about migrants, and 3) appeared to struggle with shame and humiliation attributed to the EU in a complex combination of transvaluation of the UK and freedom of movement, a nostalgic need for restoration of national pride, and endorsement of leaving the EU as a form of "change backwards".... view less
Keywords
Great Britain; EU; membership; voter; populism; political action; referendum; party; nonvoter; national consciousness
Classification
Political Process, Elections, Political Sociology, Political Culture
Free Keywords
Brexit; EU referendum; UKIP; affective practice; national pride; non-voters; populism; reactionism; ressentiment; shame
Document language
English
Publication Year
2021
Page/Pages
p. 260-273
Journal
Politics and Governance, 9 (2021) 3
Issue topic
Reactionary Politics and Resentful Affect in Populist Times
ISSN
2183-2463
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed