Abstract
Recent analyses examine the role of crisis in the emergence of the populist/anti-populist discourse and the confluence of populism and Euroscepticism at the party level. In this article, the study focuses on the analysis of the main political actors in the EU institutions, by examining the channels and discourses adopted by different actors in the (de)legitimation of the EU. The focus is on the transnational contestation (DiEM25, Democracy in Europe Movement 2025 and VOLT), following the model of analysis of the mutual construction and reproduction. The analysis shows that the antagonized discourse used by the mainstream narrative further reinforces populism and provides a breeding ground for populism to consolidate itself, while weakening the possible impact of the legitimizing representation of Euroscepticism in the EP. It takes two to tango. Euroscepticism and contestation within and outside the EU Abstract. Recent analyses examine the role of crisis in the emergence of the populist/anti-populist discourse and the confluence of populism and Euroscepticism at the party level. In this article, the study focuses on the analysis of the main political actors in the EU institutions, by examining the channels and discourses adopted by different actors in the (de)legitimation of the EU. The focus is on the transnational contestation (DiEM25, Democracy in Europe Movement 2025 and VOLT), following the model of analysis of the mutual construction and reproduction. The analysis shows that the antagonized discourse used by the mainstream narrative further reinforces populism and provides a breeding ground for populism to consolidate itself, while weakening the possible impact of the legitimizing representation of Euroscepticism in the EP.