What makes people want to change their status quo, no matter what? First Brexit, now Donald Trump. When voting to leave the EU the British voted to regain their sovereignty, and when voting for Mr Trump the American people voted to “make America great again”. Both nations seem to want to reacquire their sovereignty.
One has to wonder why, despite all the opposition from so many sectors, including his own party, Mr Trump managed to win.
What made many Americans vote for a person who was so divisive and offensive?
Mr Trump, whatever his faults, has charisma and his statements, though shocking and divisive, showed that he had no hidden agendas.
Many people had full faith in him. He convinced his followers that politicians were corrupt and that the only way forward was to vote for him, who was not a politician. He presented himself as the only guarantee of change.
He personified a movement that would change the status quo and convinced many people that America was losing its identity and greatness.
We are living in an era where populist movements have the upper hand and where democratic systems, despite their advantages, also have their flaws. As stated in Albertazzi and McDonnell (2008:4) “populists see themselves as ‘true democrats’ who voice popular opinions and grievances systematically ignored by authorities and fight to reclaim people’s sovereignty from elites in power”.
It is this frustration that people feel that they are unable to change the status quo. In response they revert to populist movements, and Donald Trump represented just that.
Structures are needed, and so are institutions, but unless they are there to serve the people and not enslave them or serve the elite, populist movements are bound to increase.