TY - JOUR
T1 - Economic or Political Outcomes
T2 - Corporate Political Activity in a Populist Setting
AU - Haq, Hammad
AU - Kuiken, Andrea
PY - 2025/3
Y1 - 2025/3
N2 - Research on corporate political activity has traditionally emphasized how businesses leverage economic outcomes, such as job creation and tax contributions, to influence policy decisions vis-à-vis the government. However, with the surge of populism in liberal democracies, we argue that businesses can no longer rely solely on economic outcomes. Through a qualitative analysis of information presented by the automotive and fishery sectors during Brexit negotiations, we find that businesses opposing populist policies highlight the economic consequences of proposed policies. These businesses aim to encourage populist governments to act responsibly, urging them to heed the concerns of influential companies and prioritize economic stability. In contrast, our contribution to existing research reveals that businesses supporting populist policies prioritize political outcomes, for example, by linking policy proposals to electoral success. This focus on political outcomes is unique to populist settings, where populist governments are particularly responsive to public sentiment.
AB - Research on corporate political activity has traditionally emphasized how businesses leverage economic outcomes, such as job creation and tax contributions, to influence policy decisions vis-à-vis the government. However, with the surge of populism in liberal democracies, we argue that businesses can no longer rely solely on economic outcomes. Through a qualitative analysis of information presented by the automotive and fishery sectors during Brexit negotiations, we find that businesses opposing populist policies highlight the economic consequences of proposed policies. These businesses aim to encourage populist governments to act responsibly, urging them to heed the concerns of influential companies and prioritize economic stability. In contrast, our contribution to existing research reveals that businesses supporting populist policies prioritize political outcomes, for example, by linking policy proposals to electoral success. This focus on political outcomes is unique to populist settings, where populist governments are particularly responsive to public sentiment.
KW - Corporate political activity
KW - Populism
KW - Brexit
U2 - 10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115234
DO - 10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115234
M3 - Article
SN - 0148-2963
VL - 190
JO - Journal of Business Research
JF - Journal of Business Research
M1 - 115234
ER -