13 Quotes by Jan-Werner Müller

Populist constitutions are designed to limit the power of nonpopulists, even when the latter form the government. Conflict then becomes inevitable. The constitution ceases to be a framework for politics and instead is treated as a purely partisan instrument to capture the polity.

populism is inherently hostile to the mechanisms and, ultimately, the values commonly associated with constitutionalism: constraints on the will of the majority, checks and balances, protections for minorities, and even fundamental rights.

populism is strong in places with weak party systems. Where previously coherent and entrenched party systems broke down, chances for populists clearly increased

Populists are, after all, often deemed to be heirs of the Jacobins.