School of Social & Political Sciences

Dr Fred Paxton

  • Research Fellow (Political & International Studies)

Biography

Fred Paxton joined the University of Glasgow in September 2024. He is working on a Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship titled Identity at the roots: place-based identity politics in divided societies. 

Fred was awarded his PhD from the European University Institute in Florence, Italy in 2021. His work has been published in leading journals including Political Science Research and Methods, and Government and Opposition. His first book, Restrained Radicals: Populist Radical Right Parties in Local Government, was published in 2023 by Cambridge University Press.

Research interests

  • Populism
  • Radical (left and right) parties
  • Subnational (regional and local) politics
  • Social media and online political communication
  • Social movements and movement parties

Research groups

Publications

List by: Type | Date

Jump to: 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019
Number of items: 17.

2026

Mosca, Lorenzo, Mikola, Bálint, Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448, Vlasie, Claudiu and Mercea, Dan (2026) How movement parties contest democratic backsliding: evidence from Hungary and Romania. Democratization, (Accepted for Publication)

Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2026) Local election results show the hurdles along the path to power for French far right. Conversation, 24 Mar. (doi: 10.64628/AB.ecur3hmvq)

2025

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 and Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 (2025) Localism as a strategy: symbolic policy making by populist radical right parties in Italy and France. Rivista Italiana di Politiche Pubbliche, 2025(3), pp. 481-510. (doi: 10.1483/118779)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2025) Movement parties of the far right: understanding nativist mobilization: Castelli Gattinara, Pietro and Andrea L. P. Pirro, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2024, 272 pp., £99.00 (Hardback), ISBN 9780198892083. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, (doi: 10.1080/14782804.2025.2538375)[Book Review] (Early Online Publication)

Drapalova, Eliska and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2025) Competing over the ‘left behind’: the effect of independent local lists on the electoral performance of populist parties. Political Research Exchange, 7(1), 2583288. (doi: 10.1080/2474736X.2025.2583288)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2025) Right up their street? News media framing of the protest activities of far-right movement parties. Acta Politica, 60, pp. 76-97. (doi: 10.1057/s41269-024-00334-w)

2024

Borbáth, Endre and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2024) Movement parties in Europe: a comparative assessment. Acta Politica, (doi: 10.1057/s41269-024-00381-3) (Early Online Publication)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2024) The impact of populist parties in government. In: Huber, Robert A. and Jankowski, Michael (eds.) Populism: An Introduction. SAGE Publications. ISBN 9781529669879

Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2024) Populist pragmatism: the nationalisation of local government strategies by the Rassemblement National. Acta Politica, 59, pp. 264-288. (doi: 10.1057/s41269-023-00292-9)

2023

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2023) Restrained Radicals: Populist Radical Right Parties in Local Government. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781009379113 (doi: 10.1017/9781009379069)

2022

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2022) With a little help from their friends: the consequences of populists in national government for policymaking in local government. Government and Opposition, 57(4), pp. 630-655. (doi: 10.1017/gov.2021.11)

Hunger, Sophia and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2022) What's in a buzzword? a systematic review of the state of populism research in political science. Political Science Research and Methods, 10(3), pp. 617-633. (doi: 10.1017/psrm.2021.44)

Pettrachin, Andrea and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2022) How do populists make decisions? : the Five Star Movement and the Lega in local government during the 'refugee crisis'. Contemporary Italian Politics, 14(1), pp. 24-48. (doi: 10.1080/23248823.2021.2005338)

2021

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 and Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 (2021) Window dressing? The mainstreaming strategy of the Rassemblement National in power at the local level of government. Government and Opposition, 56(3), pp. 545-562. (doi: 10.1017/gov.2020.11)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2021) Varieties of inclusionary and exclusionary populism in the Italian regional elections 2018-20. Contemporary Italian Politics, 13(4), pp. 402-422. (doi: 10.1080/23248823.2021.1969785)

2020

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2020) Towards a populist local democracy? The consequences of populist radical right local government leadership in Western Europe. Representation, 56(3), pp. 411-430. (doi: 10.1080/00344893.2019.1643771)

2019

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2019) The populist performance of urban crisis : the policy influence of radical right populist parties in leadership of local government in Austria and Italy. In: Biard, B., Bernhard, L. and Betz, Hans Georg (eds.) Do They Make a Difference? : the Policy Influence of Radical Right Populist Parties in Western Europe. ECPR Press: London, pp. 123-145. ISBN 9781785523304

This list was generated on Fri Apr 3 23:02:04 2026 BST.
Jump to: Articles | Books | Book Sections | Book Reviews
Number of items: 17.

Articles

Mosca, Lorenzo, Mikola, Bálint, Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448, Vlasie, Claudiu and Mercea, Dan (2026) How movement parties contest democratic backsliding: evidence from Hungary and Romania. Democratization, (Accepted for Publication)

Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2026) Local election results show the hurdles along the path to power for French far right. Conversation, 24 Mar. (doi: 10.64628/AB.ecur3hmvq)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 and Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 (2025) Localism as a strategy: symbolic policy making by populist radical right parties in Italy and France. Rivista Italiana di Politiche Pubbliche, 2025(3), pp. 481-510. (doi: 10.1483/118779)

Drapalova, Eliska and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2025) Competing over the ‘left behind’: the effect of independent local lists on the electoral performance of populist parties. Political Research Exchange, 7(1), 2583288. (doi: 10.1080/2474736X.2025.2583288)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2025) Right up their street? News media framing of the protest activities of far-right movement parties. Acta Politica, 60, pp. 76-97. (doi: 10.1057/s41269-024-00334-w)

Borbáth, Endre and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2024) Movement parties in Europe: a comparative assessment. Acta Politica, (doi: 10.1057/s41269-024-00381-3) (Early Online Publication)

Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2024) Populist pragmatism: the nationalisation of local government strategies by the Rassemblement National. Acta Politica, 59, pp. 264-288. (doi: 10.1057/s41269-023-00292-9)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2022) With a little help from their friends: the consequences of populists in national government for policymaking in local government. Government and Opposition, 57(4), pp. 630-655. (doi: 10.1017/gov.2021.11)

Hunger, Sophia and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2022) What's in a buzzword? a systematic review of the state of populism research in political science. Political Science Research and Methods, 10(3), pp. 617-633. (doi: 10.1017/psrm.2021.44)

Pettrachin, Andrea and Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2022) How do populists make decisions? : the Five Star Movement and the Lega in local government during the 'refugee crisis'. Contemporary Italian Politics, 14(1), pp. 24-48. (doi: 10.1080/23248823.2021.2005338)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 and Peace, Timothy ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5834-9251 (2021) Window dressing? The mainstreaming strategy of the Rassemblement National in power at the local level of government. Government and Opposition, 56(3), pp. 545-562. (doi: 10.1017/gov.2020.11)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2021) Varieties of inclusionary and exclusionary populism in the Italian regional elections 2018-20. Contemporary Italian Politics, 13(4), pp. 402-422. (doi: 10.1080/23248823.2021.1969785)

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2020) Towards a populist local democracy? The consequences of populist radical right local government leadership in Western Europe. Representation, 56(3), pp. 411-430. (doi: 10.1080/00344893.2019.1643771)

Books

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2023) Restrained Radicals: Populist Radical Right Parties in Local Government. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781009379113 (doi: 10.1017/9781009379069)

Book Sections

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2024) The impact of populist parties in government. In: Huber, Robert A. and Jankowski, Michael (eds.) Populism: An Introduction. SAGE Publications. ISBN 9781529669879

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2019) The populist performance of urban crisis : the policy influence of radical right populist parties in leadership of local government in Austria and Italy. In: Biard, B., Bernhard, L. and Betz, Hans Georg (eds.) Do They Make a Difference? : the Policy Influence of Radical Right Populist Parties in Western Europe. ECPR Press: London, pp. 123-145. ISBN 9781785523304

Book Reviews

Paxton, Fred ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5635-8448 (2025) Movement parties of the far right: understanding nativist mobilization: Castelli Gattinara, Pietro and Andrea L. P. Pirro, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2024, 272 pp., £99.00 (Hardback), ISBN 9780198892083. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, (doi: 10.1080/14782804.2025.2538375)[Book Review] (Early Online Publication)

This list was generated on Sun Apr 5 00:34:03 2026 BST.

Prior publications

Book Section

Lorenzo Mosca, Fred Paxton (2025) The rise of movement parties and their implications for progressive politics Crossref. (doi: 10.4337/9781800880641.00017)

PAXTON, Fred, GLUKHOVA, Daria, HOFFMANN, Matthias, MĂRGĂRIT, Diana, SANTOS, Felipe G. (2025) On movement parties and democratic quality Cadmus, EUI Research Repository. ISBN 9781032767840 (doi: 10.4324/9781003532507-9)

Thesis

PAXTON, Fred (2021) The populist radical right in local power : understanding different forms of local government leadership by populist radical right parties in western Europe Cadmus, EUI Research Repository. (doi: 10.2870/62054)

Grants

Identity at the roots: place-based identity politics in divided societies

Early Career Fellowship funded by the Leverhulme Trust. September 2024 - August 2027.

Supervision

I am happy to supervise potential PhD students who want to work on any of my research interests:

  • Populism
  • Radical (left and right) parties
  • Subnational (regional and local) politics
  • Social media and online political communication
  • Social movements and movement parties

Please get in touch to discuss a potential PhD proposal.

Teaching

  • Political parties, institutions and society
  • Comparative perspectives on populism
  • Social movements
  • Comparative European politics

Fred Paxton

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