Why Populists Love Dead Soldiers and Hate Live Officers
Journal: International Security
Year: 2026

Abstract Right-wing populist leaders often seem to love soldiers (especially fallen ones) and the trappings of military life. But their love affair with the military rarely endures. This article explains this seeming paradox through the political logic of populism. Romanticizing and mythologizing the military solves a political problem for populists: how to mobilize people power without actually granting power to the people. Soldiers who willingly risk their lives for the nation serve as a model