Denying the Will of the Armenian People: Populism, Democratic Backsliding and Polarization
Document Type
News Article
Publication Date
7-14-2020
Publication Title
EVN Report
First page number:
1
Last page number:
10
Abstract
Opponents and critics of Armenia’s post-Velvet Revolution political establishment have relied on three main arguments in their attempts to question the legitimacy and broad mandate of the Pashinyan Administration. The first argument is hinged on the populism narrative, the second argument promotes the “democratic backsliding” narrative, and the third argument advances the polarization narrative. The underlying presupposition of these arguments not only question the will and character of the Armenian people, but also suggests a condescending and dismissive attitude towards Armenian political society. Collectively, these arguments assume that the Armenian electorate is composed of a naive, ill-informed citizenry that was easily duped by a dishonest demagogue.
Keywords
Armenian political society; Post-Velvet Revolution; Political establishment; Populism; Democratic backsliding; Polarization
Disciplines
Political Science | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Language
English
Repository Citation
Kopalyan, N.
(2020).
Denying the Will of the Armenian People: Populism, Democratic Backsliding and Polarization.
EVN Report
1-10.
https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/political_science_articles/235