Many rich democracies witness a rising tide of populism. With very few exceptions, populist parties have scored electoral successes and often entered national parliaments. In Poland and Hungary, for example, populist parties dominate the respective party system, and in Austria, the FPÖ was part of the previous government coalition. For the first time since the fall of the Nazi regime, a right-wing populist party entered the Bundestag after the 2017 general election in Germany. The most spectacular instance of populist success is probably the presidency of Donald Trump, who won the 2016 US presidential election to the surprise of many observers. Even where populist parties are less successful on Election Day, they sometimes have a strong impact on policies. Brexit is just the most far-reaching example. In reaction to the rise of populism, a wealth of research has emerged. It deals with the most suitable definition of populism, the programmatic outlook of populist parties, supportive attitudes or the social base of the populist vote. Despite the richness of this research, we argue that most approaches to the study of populism fail to integrate fully the insights on unequal representation that have emerged in recent years.