2024-03-24 13:06:27
Migration is also what pushed the far right in Italy. There is also a growing distrust in the functioning of democracy, as Pierre Vercauteren explains.
Finally, the far-right parties are changing their strategy today, notably with Tom Van Grieken for the Vlaams Belang or Jordan Bardella for the National Rally in France, who have the faces of an “ideal son-in-law” and are attracting a new electorate.
Will the far right dominate the European elections?
In Germany, in the latest polls, the far-right AfD party comes second with 21% of voting intentions. In Francean Ipsos survey places Marine Le Pen’s party, the National Rally, in the lead for the European elections, with 29%.
In all these countries, the far right has established itself permanently in the political landscape. The only turnaround in Europe: the Poland. In the country, following 8 years in power, the ultraconservative right was defeated by the centrist opposition. But the populist party remains very powerful in Poland…
With us in Belgium, polls show that Vlaams Belang would win nearly 28% of the vote in the next elections. Pierre Vercauteren explains: “According to the polls, we feel a surge, but it must be noted that there is a plurality of extreme right. There is at least one extreme right specific to each country depending on the evolution of the country. example, the extreme right in Italy is different from that in Hungary”.
There can also be specificities within the same country, like in France for example: “Eric Zemmour’s extreme right is not that of the National Rally”, specifies the political scientist. So there are different degrees of extreme right. We can easily notice this by observing the banners of the various far-right parties in the European Parliament.
The Italians of “Fratelli d’Italia” and the Poles of “PiS” are thus members of the “European Conservatives and Reformists” (CRE) group. Just like the elected representatives of the “Party of Finns”. On the other hand, the Italian MEPs affiliated with the “League” and the Dutch from the “Party for Freedom” sit within the “Identity and Democracy” (ID) group, along with the French elected representatives from the “National Rally” (RN) For example.
Viktor Orbán’s Hungarian “Fidesz” was excluded from the “European People’s Party” (EPP) group in March 2021 and has since found itself among those not registered. As did several French parliamentarians from the RN who left this political group to join Eric Zemmour’s “Reconquête” party.
In any case, according to polls, the far right and the radical right are announced in the European Parliament. In this context, obtaining majorities will undoubtedly be much more complicated, especially to elect the next president of the European Commission.
Focus on a few countries: the case of Spain where the extreme right is gaining ground in certain regions
In Spain, although the far right has not managed to take power, it is still gaining ground. The far-right party “Vox” will enter the government of a fifth Spanish region, that of Murcia, thanks to a coalition agreement concluded with the Popular Party (PP, right).
The two parties ended up agreeing to form a coalition government led by the outgoing president of the region, while Vox will be responsible for security and public works and will benefit from the vice-presidency of the region.
This agreement brings to 5 the number of Spanish regions led by a right-far right coalition, following Castile and Leon since last year and those of Valencia, Extremadura and Aragon.
In addition to the 5 out of 17 regions where the PP and Vox have sealed a government alliance, these two parties have reached agreements in around ten major cities in Spain. And these pacts have sparked numerous criticisms, particularly on the left.
The case of Italy, led by a far-right government
“Pronti”, or “ready” in French. This is the slogan of the political party “Fratelli d’Italia”, which formed a coalition with the “League” and “Forza Italia” (editor’s note, Berlusconi’s party). Since October 2022, the far-right, ultraconservative and nationalist party is therefore “ready” to govern Italy following the elections.
Fratelli d’Italia (FdI), led by Giorgia Meloni since 2014, is a party considered post-fascist. Against immigration, he advocates national sovereignty and tradition. The country’s leading force, the party obtained 26% of the vote in the last Italian elections, revealing a significant increase in far-right votes in the country.
The case of Finland, where the extreme right is part of the government
In Finland, the far right does not run the government, but is part of it. The current Prime Minister, from a center-right party, governs in coalition with a far-right party, the “Party of Finns”, which came second in the last elections with 20.1% of the votes.
One of the major characteristics of the “Party of Finns” consists of the promotion of an identity-based vision of Finnish society. Her high score in the last elections allowed her to obtain several positions in the government, including that of Deputy Prime Minister for its president, Riikka Purra, who also inherits Finance.
The case of Sweden, supported by far-right parties
In Sweden, things are a little different since the “Sweden Democrats” (SD) party, founded by nationalists including neo-Nazis, supports the government without participating in it. Concretely, this means that the party votes for the laws proposed by the executive and contributes to the definition of its political line, but that none of the ministers come from its ranks.
Coming second in the legislative elections of September 11, the far-right party was a member of the electoral coalition of the right and the far right which emerged victorious from the election. But then why are they not part of the government? It was in particular the refusal, among certain parts of this political alliance, to see members of the radical right in government which prevented it from participating directly.
The Swedish executive is thus led by Ulf Kristersson (The Moderates, conservative liberal), with ministers also coming from the Christian Democrats (conservatives) and the Liberals (social liberals).
Does this rise threaten stability in Europe?
In 9 of the 27 countries of the European Union, the far right exceeded 20% in the last legislative elections. Does this rise threaten stability and peace in Europe? For Pierre Vercauteren, “As long as they don’t have a majority, even if there is a push, it’s not an immediate problem.”
He qualifies: “That being said, the far right is progressing and this leads to a weakening of the other parties who have to find coalitions more. And there, it can be more complicated.”
And Belgium?
In Belgium, we must distinguish Flanders from Wallonia, explains Pierre Vercauteren. “On the Flemish side, according to the polls, Vlaams Belang seems well on its way to being the leading party in Flanders, quite solidly”explains the political scientist.
In Wallonia, it is different: “A small push from the extreme right is not impossible on the Walloon side. But the extreme right might have certain cantons and districts, without obtaining seats and therefore being the first Walloon party”he adds.
Clearly, the rise in power in Europe of far-right parties, which advocate nationalism, anti-immigration, and Euro-scepticism, is not regarding to stop. The far right is very much part of the European political landscape today…
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