Internationalizing Elections: Lessons from Populism's Recent Defeats

The great linguist and social commentator Noam Chomsky often appeals to the “threat of a good example” as an explanatory tool in conceptualizing anti-democratic foreign policy promoted by the U.S. The phrase is most apt in the Cold War era, where social democratic forces won free and fair elections to the chagrin of Washington: think Chile’s Salvador Allende or Iran’s Mohammad Mosaddegh, both democratically elected and both victims of American-sponsored coups. The threat of successful democratic socialist states was too much of a risk for D.C.

Today, Chomsky’s concept seems to have taken on a new application. Donald Trump’s return to power was at first hailed by right-wing parties across the West as both a harbinger of their own future electoral success and a model of populist governance. In early March, I observed how Trump’s unprovoked trade wars and threats of militarized territorial expansion put the dubious prospect of transnational populism into question. Now, just days after elections in Canada and Australia, it appears that Western populism has been put on its back heel.

The stock market plunge, a litany of legal challenges, and the detention and deportation of lawful citizens, tourists, and visa holders have turned Trumpism (and Trump himself) into something altogether odious to American and Western citizens alike. The man once seen as a role model by right-wing allies has become a liability to their own political ambitions: a good example turned pariah. Against the backdrop of America experiencing its first GDP contraction in years, the international right-wing is desperate to create distance between itself and its former political hero.

Canada’s Mark Carney may be the actual good example the West needs to heed. By internationalizing the election, the leader of Canada’s once-beleaguered Liberal Party successfully tied his Trump-esque opponent, Pierre Poilievre, to the policies wrecking the Canadian economy and upending workers’ lives on both sides of the border. The soundbites juxtaposing Trump’s words and positions against the strikingly similar stances of Poilievre were enough to force the Conservative Party leader to rebrand his image and rhetoric. Canadian voters didn’t buy it. There’s no greater symbolic rejection than Poilievre losing his own seat to a Liberal rival.

A similar story unfolded in Australia, where incumbent Prime Minister Anthony Albanese led his Labor Party to a decisive victory over an opponent so Trumpian that party leaders promised to “Make Australia Great Again.” The Aussie MAGA hats became another symbol of a good example gone bad. Prime Minister Albanese's rival, Peter Dutton, also lost his own seat.

Although these two elections were certainly about more than Donald Trump’s brand of globally destabilizing nationalism, his boorish presence and the measurable socio-economic damage of his policies have aided democratic parties around the world. These elections offer an emerging blueprint cosmopolitans globally should take seriously:

Internationalize the Election

Just as an out-of-power party links local politicians to an unpopular national incumbent, democratic parties should frame their populist opponents as offshoots of Trump’s good example gone bad. In most cases, far-right leaders are on record lavishing praise on Trump for both substance and style. That’s a connection no democratic party should hesitate to reinforce, repeatedly. Canadian and Australians balked at the prospect of importing American-style self-inflicted wounds. Framing populists within this transnational narrative enhances voter awareness and strengthens a cosmopolitan political strategy.

Emphasize Practical Governance

Populism’s goal of smashing the “elite” in the name of the common person is largely based on sloganeering, often detached from real-world policymaking. The United States’ weakening economy and its emerging constitutional crises now serve as a cautionary tale of populism in power. It is neither “commonsensical” nor popular, and it delivers the promise of greatness only to its wealthiest backers.

Moreover, many of the Trump administration’s economic moves are actively weakening America’s global financial standing. Mass selloffs in equities and a surprising abandonment of the dollar by some investors as a safe haven reflect real consequences. In short, Trump’s brand of populism creates economic instability, social uncertainty, and policy incoherence, with little upside for working people.

Expose Populist Elitism

Despite appeals to working-class identity, nationalism is a fundamentally elitist political project, favoring corporate power and heavy industry over labor interests. In the United States, the presence of a billionaire political class already made this obvious. But now, a more direct signal has emerged.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, a billionaire financier, recently commented on the future of American labor:

"You know, this is the new model, where you work in these kinds of plants for the rest of your life, and your kids work here, and your grandkids work here.” He added that Americans are “...going to see the greatest surge in training for what we call tradecraft — teaching people how to be robotics, mechanics, engineers, and electricians for high-tech factories.”

Lutnick’s remarks beg an almost laughable question: Who voted for their children to become robot mechanics? Is this really the vision American workers have for their families? Are citizens prepared to absorb the financial consequences (higher inflation, rising interest rates, temporary job loss, etc.) for such a radical transformation?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the most in-demand U.S. jobs are in data science, cybersecurity, and market analytics. Meanwhile, surveys show the most desired careers among Westerners are in aviation, law, medicine, and digital services. Nowhere on these lists do mechanical trades rank as top aspirations. Nationalist economics boils down to choices made by a small group of wealthy elites for tens of millions of workers without their input; one would be hard pressed to find a more apt example of populist hypocrisy at this present moment in American politics.

The populist right's blue collar visions for their country's flies in the face of the desires of many workers. (Image courtesy of Remitley)

Emphasize Cosmopolitan Patriotism

A promising shift for the cosmopolitan cause is taking shape. Across the West, discussions about deeper international integration are gaining steam. Recent proposals include Canada potentially joining the European Union, and the restoration of free movement between the UK and EU for citizens under 30. The UK and EU have also jointly embraced new calls for free and open trade.

Nationalist rhetoric has long presented global cooperation as a threat to sovereignty. But recent democratic victories have redefined transnational solidarity as a patriotic duty, one that strengthens both local economies and the broader democratic order. The blueprint for cosmopolitan patriotism is emerging, and democratic parties would do well to contribute their own national visions to it.

Delivering 

These two electoral victories represent some of the most significant progress the democratic world has made in pushing back the creeping tide of authoritarian populism. But one final lesson remains, and it may be the hardest to implement: the victors must deliver for the common worker. Despite Trump's good-bad example, the populist leanings of the West will re-emerge anywhere democratic parties fail to further the goals of their polities. There is no stronger defense against authoritarianism than a democracy that works.