Explaining Regionalist Party Positioning in a Multidimensional Ideological Space: A Framework for Analysis

This contribution proposes an analytical framework for explaining regionalist parties’ ideological positioning in the multi-dimensional political space. It focuses on three ideological dimensions: centre–periphery, left–right and European integration. Positioning along the first two dimensions is explained in terms of socio-structural characteristics of the regions and the incentives posed by institutional/political environments. Then mutual influences between positioning on the three different ideological dimensions are discussed. The structural characteristics of the regions are particularly useful in locating the main regionalist party in each region to the left or right of centre and, to some extent, in explaining centre–periphery radicalism. Voting systems and the dynamics of (multi-level) party systems help us to explain political fragmentation of the regionalist movement, changes of positions through time and the adoption of moderate or radical positions in both centre–periphery and left–right dimensions. Finally, the analysis of cross-dimension positioning suggests that moderate centre–periphery stances (i.e. non-secessionist) tend to match with liberal or (especially Christian-democratic) moderate and conservative positions. It also suggests that anti-European integration positions match with left–right radicalism and, increasingly so, with centre–periphery radicalism.