‘Pincer Movement’ Model of Opposition to Populists in Power: Law and Justice

This article presents the results of a study on opposition to Law and Justice, a populist party ruling the Polish government between 2015 and 2019, using a form of protest event analysis relying on newspaper data. We show that the pattern of opposition to Law and Justice during this time took the form of a ‘tolerant pincer movement model’, involving a mix of tolerant initiatives by public authorities, political parties, and civil society actors operating at both national and international levels. We also show that despite ‘democratic backsliding’ and a shrinking space for civil society, public authorities, and civil society actors were the most active opponents of the Law and Justice and that among international actors, the European Union was particularly active. We explain this pattern of opposition arguing that it is difficult to use intolerant responses against governing populist parties. In addition, restrictions on the autonomy of many state institutions created conditions for civil society actors to play a more significant role, as well as for the mobilization and cooperation of actors at both the national and supranational levels.