Abstract

The rise of populism in the Western world has become one of the most prominent political phenomena in recent times to such an extent that Western democracies without strong populisms have been more of an exception than a norm (Marzouki, McDonnel and Rey, 2016). Spain, despite fulfilling most of the conditions that are often associated with the emergence of populism and despite some frustrated attempts is a clear example of this exceptionality. This article explores the reasons why in Spain and despite not being immune to a certain populist contagion, populism has not been installed within the framework of national politics. The only space where populism seems to have settled has been in Catalonia where the nationalist movement has succumbed to populist temptation in recent years.