Edoardo Campanella says an aging population is another factor that contributes to the rise of populism. Economic insecurity among the working class and anger at the elites that embrace globalisation have been fertile ground to sow the seeds of social discontent. But populists capitalise on nostalgia to garner political support, and their message is imbued with memories of a mythical golden past – often a more mono-cultural, mono-racial one.

The author points out that across Europe, young people are drawn more to left-wing populism, where as their older cohorts flock to right-wing parties. He says an “age-driven voting pattern” could determine the outcome of the 2019 European Parliament election. The older generation has been persuaded to back an economic-nationalist agenda with the trappings of traditional values and security.

That older voters are infatuated with populists’ rhetoric ought to be seen as “a cry for help.” Despite memories of World War II they have not weaned themselves off authoritarian rule, which gives them a false sense of law and order. Feeling out of place in a tech-driven, multicultural world, the older workforce bears the brunt of globalisation and technological progress. Displaced workers are “condemned to long-term unemployment,” while dreading a “crumbling” pension system.

Education is also an important compass for political orientation. “Older Europeans – especially those with less education – are more suspicious of the European project and less trusting of the European Parliament than younger Europeans are,” who tend to be eco-minded and internationalist in outlook. A lack of education is sometimes blamed for disseminating conspiracy theories, which run like wildfire through many populist movements.

Meanwhile a generational battle is unfolding between pensioners, who “have reason to worry about threats to their retirement benefits from their own children,” and their younger counterparts, who, “frustrated with socioeconomic systems that are clearly tilted in favor of retirees, are increasingly calling for fairer intergenerational redistribution of scarce resources.” Millennials fear that they would be worse off than their parents’ generation.

According to the author, Italy’s Five Star Movement, which governs in a coalition with the League, recently called for a “citizen’s income” that would be “available to all unemployed people regardless of age.” Italy has one of the lowest birth rates in the world and one of the most generous state pension schemes—an unsustainable combination that leaves an ever diminishing workforce paying for an ever rising number of pensioners. Many other countries in Europe are grappling with similar problems.

In order to “stem the nationalist tide, mainstream parties urgently need to devise a new social compact that addresses the mounting sense of insecurity among older voters.” While their political clout is growing, their “ability to adapt will decline” in our “rapidly changing economies.” Subsequently, older voters “will demand more and more socioeconomic security and irresponsible populists will be waiting in the wings to accommodate them.”

The author says it is up to “enlightened” politicians to address older voters’ fears. “They will need to strike a better balance between openness and protection, innovation and regulation; and they will need to do so without falling into a regressive populist trap.” Equally important is to bridge the gap between young earners and dependent pensioners. Instead of nannying the elderly, authorities must upgrade their skills and encourage them to cooperate with younger people. In order to make people more receptive to learning, children must be told at an early age that learning is a lifelong process.

Indeed, populism feeds on social discontent and stokes the temptation to turn on "the other" as scapegoat for all ills. Mainstream politicians have a duty not to fan hostility but to address real concerns and fight harder to re-engage people of all ages.