"On Populist Reason" Twenty Years after its Publication

This panel is designed as an opportunity to pay homage to Ernesto Laclau's seminal book "On Populist Reason" twenty years after its publication. The publication of "On Populist Reason" became a watershed moment in the study of populism, freeing it from sociologicism and historicisim. It advanced towards a post-foundational political ontology. Concepts like floating signifier, chain of equivalence and dichotomization of the political field became part and parcel of the vocabulary of political thinking worldwide. His frame of analysis has been put to use in countless theoretical and empirical projects throughout the world. More than re-thinking populism, Ernesto Laclau re-thought politics itself. The sheer complexity of Laclau's project, however, creates areas for further debate, revision, and expansion. This panel will create the opportunity to reflect on its impact on the expansion of populist studies, and to offer a critical assessment of its legacies.