How a populist remains in politics: an Indian Muslim politician’s winning style

Abstract

In a competitive political system where getting renominated is challenging and incumbency disadvantage is a reality, what factors compel an electorate to keep a certain leader in power for over four decades? This article examines the qualitative characteristics of Azam Khan’s politics in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, and their interlinkages with his sustained electoral success. Through ethnographic methods, I uncover the various populist strategies he deploys in his connection with his electorate and investigate local responses to this politics. The strategies involve an anti-elite rhetoric, constant identification with the people, self-victimization, the projection of a strongman image, his use of transgressive language, the importance in the party, and the voters’ perception of lack of alternatives. A comparison is also undertaken with non-populist opposition politicians to understand the significance of these strategies. In times of majoritarianism when Muslim candidates are marginalized by mainstream political parties and struggle to win elections, understanding why people accept a Muslim leader as their symbol also has wider implications for the study of representation in which considering both the leader’s claim of being voters’ voice as well as voters’ acceptance of that claim is contextually important.