How niche parties react to losing their niche : the cases of the Brexit Party, the Green Party and Change UK

Abstract

This contribution considers how niche parties react when they lose their niche, using the cases of three parties in the turbulent period prior to the 2019 UK general election: the Brexit Party, the Green Party and Change UK. I overview the background of these parties before showing that each lost its respective policy niches to larger, more established parties. I show that each responded with some combination of directly competing with the mainstream party; electorally cooperating with them or other parties; or diversifying into something distinct from their mainstream analogue. I explain how each party’s approach partially explains their 2019 general election result, as well as European Parliament elections result, using British Election Study data. I suggest that this ‘compete, cooperate or diversify’ approach provides a theoretical framework for understanding how niche parties are likely to react to losing their niche elsewhere.