Populism and the Rise of Secessionist Movements in the European Union: A Geopolitical Analysis of Internal Fragmentation Dynamics

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between populism and the rise of secessionist movements within the European Union from a geopolitical perspective. It argues that populism should not be understood solely as a reaction to socio-economic grievances or as a challenge to liberal democratic institutions, but rather as a discursive and political mechanism that redefines the boundaries of political community and sovereignty. By mobilizing a binary opposition between “the people” and “the elite,” populist discourse facilitates the reconfiguration of collective identities at the subnational level, thereby enabling the emergence of what this article conceptualizes as “secessionist populism.”

Drawing on a qualitative, multi-level analytical framework that combines geopolitical analysis, discourse analysis, and comparative case studies (Catalonia, Scotland, and Flanders), the article demonstrates how populism contributes to transforming secessionist claims from marginal or identity-based demands into politically legitimate and democratically framed projects. It further explores how the European Union, as a system of multi-level governance, inadvertently provides an enabling environment for these dynamics by weakening the mediating role of the nation-state while offering alternative frameworks for political and economic continuity.

The article introduces the concept of “internal geopolitical fragmentation” to capture the gradual and non-violent reconfiguration of political space within the EU, driven by democratic processes and subnational actors. It concludes that the interaction between populism and secessionism constitutes a structural challenge to the European integration project, as it destabilizes traditional conceptions of sovereignty, undermines national cohesion, and re-politicizes the foundations of the European political order.