Political Entrepreneurs Research Articles

Cleavage theory meets Bourdieu: studying the role of group identities in cleavage formation

Abstract In this paper, we develop a framework for studying the role of group identities in contemporary cleavage formation. Identities, we suggest, hold the key to a central conundrum of current political sociology: the fact that today’s electoral realignments appear to be rooted in the social structure of post-industrial societies, while the decline of mass organizations has dissolved traditional links between politics and social structure. Bringing cleavage theory into dialog with the sociology of Pierre Bourdieu, we theorize how group identities may play an important role in stabilizing a new universalism-particularism cleavage emerging in Western Europe today. We identify two key processes of cleavage identity formation: bottom-up processes of “social closure” and top-down “classification struggles” waged by political entrepreneurs. For both processes, we review empirical findings and formulate an agenda for further research.

Conditional single-issue political entrepreneurship: The impact of education and attitudinal predictors on support for the Finns Party

This study explores support for the populist far-right Finns Party in the 2023 Finnish parliamentary election. In the 2023 election, the Finns Party obtained their largest historical vote share, which led to the party's inclusion in the current coalition government. Utilizing an original, nationally representative survey, we find that Finns Party support can mainly be explained by political entrepreneurship and the attraction of voters holding anti-immigrant sentiment. While we find that other attitudes had some relationship with Finns Party support, the substantive impact of these attitudes is far less substantial than are attitudes towards immigrants. Further, we find that the impact of attitudes towards immigrants and Finns Party vote choice intention is conditional on education level. Attitudes towards immigrants have a more limited impact on Finns Party support for respondents at higher education levels when compared with those at lower levels. The findings hold significance for the broader literature on populist parties, demonstrating that education can significantly diminish the translation of anti-immigration attitudes into support for far-right parties.

Political entrepreneurs and interest groups in the CPTPP ratification process in Chile: A case of politicization?

AbstractThis study examines the strategies employed by Chilean political parties and interest groups to politicize the Trans‐Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). To achieve this goal, political entrepreneurs and anti‐trade lobbies opposed the CPTPP are using a distinct strategy to shape the debate. The idea of trade politicization helps understand how these key actors expanded the scope of topics, mobilizing political action from various groups such as environmentalists, unions, indigenous activists, and advocates for gender equality. Furthermore, this strategy involves shifting the discourse away from the traditional dichotomy of free trade versus protectionism and redirecting the debate toward ideological and cultural dimensions such as legitimacy and sovereignty.

Setting the tone: the diffusion of moral and moral-emotional appeals across political and public discourse

Abstract Whether a topic is seen in a moral or moral-emotional light has significant political implications. Yet, we lack knowledge about the process of moralization: Who defines the way topics are communicated about? Where prior research has investigated the relative power of different actors to place a topic on the agenda or shape opinions, we study who sets the moral and moral-emotional tone of debate. To do so, we zoom in on immigration discourse in Germany and analyze fine-grained social media data from politicians, political parties, newspapers, and members of the public over a period of more than four years. After employing a transformer model to identify moral and moral-emotional appeals, we use structural vector autoregression models to demonstrate the important role of radical-right challengers in shaping public discourse in a negative moral-emotional direction. The results inform theories of moralization and political entrepreneurship.

Political entrepreneurs and the perils of the top office

This case study examines whether politically connected entrepreneurs benefit from their political connections. We study the regulated Thai telecoms industry from its inception in the early 1980s. We examine the telecoms firms owned by an entrepreneur turned politician, who rose to the position of prime minister in 2001 and was deposed in 2006. We develop the concepts of the political entrepreneur and his/her political lifecycle. We show that the value of political entrepreneur's political activities and connections varies through this lifecycle. Political entrepreneurs are likely to benefit more from informal ties with politicians and less visible political involvement early in their lifecycle, while rising to higher-level political offices is less likely to benefit them. This is due to a range of internal and external limitations on the values political entrepreneurs derive from their political activities including the negative impact of greater visibility and scrutiny from media and political opposition. Also, the business model of political entrepreneurship is likely to be copied by business rivals, causing political rents to be shared or competed away. We also find that crises increase the value of political connections.

In the Name of My Father: The Personalization of Government in Nigerian Politics, 1999-2023

The study examines the implications of the roles of class, godfatherism, and personalization of government for Nigeria’s political development and nation-building. The research method employed was the qualitative analytical method which involved content analysis of relevant documentary data on the subject. The approach adopted was also thematic. The research findings indicate that because of the “unending” transition to civil rule, most politicians avoided the transition because they are not certain if the military will hand over power to civilian, and they lacked the money to compete with the political entrepreneurs. These gave room for political entrepreneurs or ‘money bags’ to dominate the transition programme. The principle of party supremacy shortly lost its meaning as campaign organizations took over from party secretariats. And the party’s manifesto or programme lost its meaning to the personal ‘greed’ or ambitions of the political entrepreneurs, who also positioned their children to power through various means, including inheritance of political legacies, strategic alliances, and leveraging financial resources. The attitude of these godfathers impacted negatively on good governance. It also reduces the legitimacy of government and voids the electoral value of the citizens.

Beyond ‘Infodemic’: Complexity, Knowledge and Populism in COVID-19 Crisis Governance

ABSTRACT The concept of the ‘infodemic’ has become a popular explanation for the rejection of anti-COVID-19 crisis governance measures. In this paper, we argue that infodemic is an inherent property of society under free institutions misused to pursue an epistemically vicious political epistemology. Furthermore, we provide an alternative account of political epistemology of COVID-19 governance and popular resistance to it. Namely, we argue that 1) pandemics represent a complex problem, and some level of resistance to governance which restricts liberties while informed by ongoing scientific and political learning processes is inevitable, and 2) the resistance is exacerbated by the history of technocratization of governance and the exclusionary socio-economic inequalities which condition political and epistemic deficiencies easily exploitable by the political entrepreneurs of right-wing populism, particularly under the conditions of social media which gamifies public discourse. Thus, we argue, the correct response to the cultures of rejection of anti-COVID-19 measures is to change the underlying political and economic conditions and not to limit speech or restrict franchise as the infodemic diagnosis suggests.

The Decentralised Governance in Kenya: Implications on Citizen Participation in the Local Governance

Abstract This study sought to examine the extent to which decentralisation efforts have affected citizen participation in local governance in Kenya. Survey research designs was employed. 371 questionnaires were administered and 16 interview conducted with key stakeholders. The findings revealed that decentralisation influences citizen participation in devolved Governance. 77.3% of the respondents agreed decentralization had promoted political entrepreneurship while 75% contended that decentralization had influenced citizen participation in development of policies and legislation. Moreover, 57.2% of the respondents felt that citizen participation in decentralized policy-making was high while 69% of the respondents were satisfied that decentralization had made it possible for citizens to participate in county budgeting. Only 49% approved the effectiveness of decentralization in promoting citizen participation in participatory budgeting and planning process. The national and county governments should put in place measures to safeguard the independence of the counties in realizing the objective of citizen participation in governance.

Securing financial returns in politically uncertain worlds: Finance and urban water politics in Brazil

Studies of financialization have highlighted how politics, particularly through the state, drives the increasing entanglement of financial actors and rationales in the production of urban space. This article shifts the angle to consider the challenges that uncertain politics pose for such entanglement. Looking beyond techno-calculative practices, it explores how finance works politically to sustain value extraction within fragmented regulatory landscapes. It does so through historical and ethnographic analysis of financial investment in urban water and sanitation provision in Brazil, drawing on fieldwork, interviews, and a new dataset on public-private contracts to interrogate how private water companies navigate politico-regulatory relations under financial investors like private equity. It shows that while these providers were quite engaged in local politics under their original owners (construction groups), under financial investors they sought to “escape” it by curbing ties to public officials, reducing the autonomy of local subsidiaries, and successfully lobbying for national standards on regulatory norms. It argues these centralizing efforts constituted forms of centripetal politics meant to enhance asset monitoring, increase regulatory legibility, and reduce political uncertainty. The findings illuminate how financial investors work across political scales to navigate political risk and sustain financial value, thus problematizing the conventional analytical focus on how finance capitalizes on local forms of entrepreneurial politics. Crucially, they reveal the need to treat institutional environments not simply as filters for financial investment but as objects of political contestation by financial actors. This allows for blurring the boundaries between finance and politics, and for politicizing finance.

The President of the Republic of Poland as a Political Entrepreneur

The aim of this paper is to present the status, role, and the potential for political action of the President of the Republic of Poland analysed through the prism of the concept of the political entrepreneur. I make a diagnosis of the president’s political resources and their potential for the realisation political goals – his formation and his own. The resources of the President can be considered in two categories, i.e. permanent and labile. They are concentrated around the prerogatives held, the political environment, the political capital of the office, and the opportunity structure.

Policies Make Politicians: Intermediaries, State Benefits, and Political Entrepreneurship in Brazil

Policies Make Politicians: Intermediaries, State Benefits, and Political Entrepreneurship in Brazil

What the State of Nature Hath Joined Together: Bolsonarismo as Horizon and Machine

Abstract TAnalyses of fascism often evoke an excessive tendency that pulls it beyond the very possibility of its normalization as a political order. This essay suggests that reading a phenomenon like Bolsonarismo through this prism simultaneously identifies something true about its vision and misrecognizes some key aspects of its organization and internal functioning. Attention to the latter—particularly the role played by what the author describes as “political entrepreneurs”—allows us to understand contemporary far right agitation in Brazil as a machine to both stimulate and contain excess. Thus, while the Bolsonarista horizon could be described as something like a differentially distributed state of nature, this is not so much some extreme outside of politics than something a lot more continuous with conditions already in existence. This, finally, makes it possible to place the January 8, 2023, attack on Brasília in context.

Europe 2020: The EU Commission and Political Entrepreneurship

This study deals with the European Commission and Communication Europe 2020, which was a result of the global economic crisis of 2007–2008 and forward. Europe 2020 was an initiative to deal with the crisis by promoting smart, sustainable, and inclusive growth. The Commission addressed the crisis as an existential threat to Europe, but also as a window of opportunity to build a new prosperous region. This study explores the political entrepreneurial efforts taken by the Commission as well as assesses the outcome of reforms implemented. The Commission has achieved many targets, although some challenges remain unsolved.

Kewirausahaan Politik Walikota Surakarta dalam Upaya Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia

This study aims to capture the practice of political entrepreneurship in human resource development efforts undertaken by Surakarta Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka. This research is important for expanding studies in the field of Political Science related to the practice of political entrepreneurship in Indonesia, particularly at higher levels. Political entrepreneurship actions are carried out through the utilization of authority in the form of resource allocation by political actors to generate profits and create maximum public benefits. By borrowing the alertness and discovery branch of thought in the theory of political entrepreneurship developed by McCaffrey and Salerno (2011), this study seeks to analyze the actions of political actors in presenting public benefits through the revitalization policy of the Solo Technopark Science and Technology. This research was qualitative, using a case study method through data collection in the form of interviews, documentation, literature study, and observation. The results showed that the Mayor of Surakarta is sensitive in seeing global challenges and answering these challenges through a solution that is ultimately able to bring benefits to the people in Surakarta City. The findings of this study show one side of the characteristics, that the practice of political entrepreneurship carried out at a higher level is able to produce greater benefits and benefits for the community and also political actors.

수정 다중흐름모형과 옹호연합모형을 활용한 서울시립대 대학등록금 정책변동 분석

In this study, we employ an analytical framework that combines the modified multiple streams model, based on Kingdon’s original multiple streams framework with the advocacy coalition framework to investigate the agenda-setting and decision-making process of University of Seoul’s half-price tuition policy. We describe characteristics found within the debates concerning the abolition of this half-price tuition at the case institution. Central to our argument is the theoretical and conceptual validity of the modified multiple streams model when applied to real-world policy phenomena. In addition, we elucidate the changing patterns and reasons for change in advocacy coalition activities based on political streams. This study’s model proves beneficial for analyzing South Korea’s educational policy, especially as the modified multiple streams framework introduces a concept of political entrepreneurs that prior research did not highlight. We argue the need for a critical reflection on the traditional multiple stream framework’s concept of policy entrepreneurs in addition to that the explanatory power of the advocacy coalition model may diminish in contexts where political streams exert stronger influence than policy streams. Furthermore, it is essential to contextualize foreign-developed policy analysis models to fit South Korean circumstances and to adopt and utilize the concept of ‘entrepreneurship’ in a flexible and dynamic manner.

The network origin of Thailand’s youth movement

ABSTRACT Thailand appeared to be under a tide of youthful revolutionary change. In 2020, in a rare moment in Thai history, university and secondary school students, particularly female and LGBTQ + schoolchildren, took the lead in national protests against an autocratic government. It was a period during which the seemingly impossible, such as the reform of Thailand’s royal institutions, appeared possible. What were the historical origins of the country’s revolutionary youth movement? This article argues that the Thai youth movement emerged from youth activist networks fostered by post-coup political entrepreneurs. It describes the foundational moments of these networks and analyses their inside brokerage processes, i.e. how these political entrepreneurs cultivated friendships and ties among segregated young activists by creating unique spaces – campsites and activist houses. These underground spaces allowed activists to connect, learn, brainstorm, organize mobilization, and build cross-issue and cross-regional activist ties under an autocratic regime.

Me Too as Transnational Advocacy Networks: The Case of Anti-Sexual Violence Movement in Indonesia

The research discusses the anti-sexual movement in Indonesia as a part of the global movement of Me Too and transnational advocacy networks. It aims to answer how the transnational advocacy movement explains the movement against sexual violence in Indonesia. The argument of the research is offered in three parts. First, it argues that the anti-sexual violence movement in Indonesia is a part of transnational advocacy networks. The analysis is provided by explaining the process of boomerang patterns, political entrepreneurs, and international contacts. Second, as part of a transnational advocacy network, the anti-sexual violence movement in Indonesia uses four tactics: information politics, symbolic politics, leverage politics, and accountability politics. The research argues that the anti-sexual violence movement uses all four of the tactics to achieve its goals. Lastly, the third part of the argument discusses the five stages of transnational advocacy networks that the movement has achieved with regard to their goals, and the research argues that it has reached all the stages except for the last one, which is influenced by state behavior.

From creeping crisis to policy change: The adoption of drought preparedness policy in Brazil

Abstract This paper aims to understand the national-level policy change that occurred in Brazilian drought management, whereby the policy shifted from reactive crisis management to a drought preparedness approach. We found that a combination of factors supported the policy change, such as the interplay of multiple drought events in different regions of the country, the length and timing of these events, attention paid to the issue, and the role of policy entrepreneurs and political entrepreneurs in connecting solutions to the problem. The analysis is based on the multiple streams framework (MSF), which includes two windows of opportunity: an agenda window, to account for the juncture at which the drought issue appeared on the political and public agenda; and the decision window, when a drought preparedness instrument was designed and adopted. We contribute to the literature on policy change in the wake of a disaster by showing how a long-duration event sparked policy change and by shedding light on the role of creeping crises as focusing events; and we contribute to the MSF literature by analytically distinguishing the features of the agenda and the decision window and by applying the theory to a Latin American context.

The European Commission as Political Entrepreneur – The Europe 2020 Strategy

This study deals with the European Commission Communication Europe 2020, which was a direct result of the global economic crisis that began in 2007-2008. The focus is to explore how the Commission gained an extended role as political entrepreneur by launching the Europe 2020 Strategy and turning crisis into a window of opportunity. Europe 2020 was a Commission initiative to deal with the crisis by promoting smart, sustainable and socially inclusive development beyond the narrow scope of economic growth. The Commission addressed the economic crisis as an existential threat to European economy, but also to wealth, health integration and stability. It is argued that the crisis management of the Commission, was, in times of weakened member-state capacities, a result of political entrepreneurship.

Political Entrepreneurship: The Role of the European Commission and Sweden in Adopting Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) 2014-2020

Political entrepreneurship and Europeanization from top-down perspective demonstrates the endeavors of the European Commission as agenda setter however there seems some loopholes in adopting CAP as per Europe 2020 Strategy. Conversly, CAP in Sweden, from bottom-up political entrepreneurship and Europeanization standpoint, heading towards success, development and sustainability with Swedish existing capacity of policy adoptability hence anteceding the European Commission. Swedish sustainability culture and its regionalized policy approach are glaring apsects in this respect. Consequently Europe 2020 strategy is successful in Sweden despite minor obstacles comparatively.