Why does the radical populist right win?
Individualism, new cultural cleavage, and crisis of representation

The rise of far-right populisms in the last decade cannot be explained solely by cyclical economic factors or leadership strategies, but rather by the convergence between structural transformations of the contemporary subject and a deep crisis of political representation. This process has produced a new political and cultural cleavage that divides society between an expressive individualism—oriented toward identity recognition and the expansion of rights—and a defensive individualism, centered on order, security, and normative stabilization, with this second orientation succeeding in becoming an electoral majority. The text analyzes the inability of political parties—increasingly unmoored from their social bases—to process these transformations, as well as addressing the crisis of representation that amplifies polarization. The conclusion contains general guidelines that can contribute to the reconstruction of party intermediation and the reinstitutionalization of conflict as necessary conditions to contain the dangerous and destructive illiberal advance.