Support for far-right parties has been growing across Europe, with radical right, populist parties in coalition governments in Croatia, Czechia, Italy and Finland, and leading in the polls in Austria, Belgium, France and Germany. The Guardian reported this year that nearly a quarter of voters in Europe voted for far-right parties in their most recent national elections, a fivefold increase since 1995. In Germany, Alternative für Deutschland recently booked a historic state election victory in Saxony-Anhalt.
Elsewhere, though – in the Netherlands, in Hungary and in Sweden, where the Sweden Democrats lost vote share – far-right parties have suffered defeats. But their ideas – and their influence on mainstream politics – are today clearly visible across the continent, notably on policies around immigration and law-and-order. The coming months will see further crucial elections, beginning in Spain in November and continuing in France, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Slovakia, Poland and Italy next year.
How might these elections shape the political future of Europe? What is the impact of their policies – and what might prevent their continuing rise? The Guardian’s Europe correspondent Jon Henley has reported for the Guardian from 23 of the EU’s 27 member states, while Europe community affairs correspondent Ashifa Kassam was on the ground in Sweden and Germany’s Saxony-Anhalt state to speak with people ahead of the elections.
Jon and Ashifa answered questions about their reporting and experiences. One user asked: It’s no secret in Europe that Donald Trump and his allies are funding far-right parties all over the continent. Trump is unpopular enough in Europe that even the majority of people planning to vote for the AfD et al despise him.
So how can so many Europeans who hate Trump still vote for the far right? Jon Henley: You’re absolutely right about the Trump administration’s efforts to promote far right parties in Europe. That was made very plain in the US National Security Strategy policy document last year – I wrote about that here.
But while there may be an ideological affinity between European far right and nationalist voters on issues like anti-immigration, hostility toward the EU, and softer stances on Russia, Trump’s “America First” policies (demands re Greenland, tariff threats, etc.) and constant unpredictability pose major problems for far-right leaders trying to look credible in Europe, because they scare all European voters – including far-right voters. Leaders including Giorgia Meloni in Italy and Marine Le Pen in France have openly criticised Trump and distanced themselves from his more erratic pronouncements, conspiracy claims and hostility toward European security. European far-right voters’ support for Trump varies from country to country but is broadly low – clearly peace and security in Europe matter more than anti-immigration sentiment.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
