The Banality of Populism: Rethinking Governance in Indonesia, Latin America, and the West

Populism is often theorized as a disruptive force hostile to liberal democratic norms. This paper challenges that view by examining how populism is also embedded within institutions. Using a comparative analysis of Indonesia, Latin America, and the West, it develops a typology of governance‐based populism focused on institutional engagement, leadership style, and ideological anchoring. The findings reveal that populism is not a transient anomaly but a governing modality: routinized, absorbed, and morally staged. In the West, it corrodes liberalism from within; in Latin America, it fuses redistribution with executive dominance; and in Indonesia, it blends piety, developmentalism, and bureaucratic rationality. Populism emerges not only as a communicative style but as a framework of rule. This study reframes populism as banal, normalized through policy routines, moral leadership, and institutional practices, contributing to a post‐Western understanding of populism as a governing force in hybrid, postcolonial states.