Far right in Europe (user search)
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  Far right in Europe (search mode)
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Author Topic: Far right in Europe  (Read 774 times)
Pick Up the Phone
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Posts: 428


« on: November 23, 2019, 02:40:16 PM »

With the far right rising and even appearing in countries like Germany and Spain where it didn't exist a decade ago while now leading in Italy and competitive in Finland and Sweden, anybody know how to push it back or will it result in one actually winning?  Denmark was successful by the Social Democrats combining tough immigration policies with a more generous welfare state so would a policy like that elsewhere be successful or was that unique to Denmark?

I think the most important thing is (a) to refrain from creating a self-fulfilling prophecy and (b) to keep the local context in mind. Not all far-right parties in Western Europe are the same and not always did they 'rise' because of the same or even because of related reasons. In fact, there are vast differences one should consider.

Let's take the case of Germany for instance: Were there far-right parties and politicians ten years ago? Of course! Most prominently the National Democratic Party (NPD) which held seats in the state parliaments of Saxony (9.2% in 2004; 5.6% in 2009) and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (7.3% in 2006), but also a plethora of minor parties like the DVU, Pro Köln/NRW/Deutschland, Die Freiheit, PDV, Pro DM... In addition, there were also the Republicans in Baden-Württemberg (1992: 10.9%; 1996: 9.1%) and Berlin (1989: 7.5%) or the PRO in Hamburg (2001: 19,4(!)%), not to mention a far more conservative CDU/CSU which even had to expel an openly anti-Semitic MP (during the so-called Hohmann-Affäre) in 2003. Today, all of these parties do either not exist anymore or have vanished into oblivion and the ultra-conservative CDU/CSU of the past has turned into a rather moderate center-right party which regularly enters into coalitions with both Social Democrats and Greens. And while almost all former (far-right) voters of these parties have switched to the AfD, there is no actual indication that their number is higher than it was 10 or 15 years ago. The only differences are: 1. There is now only one relevant party instead of many irrelevant ones. 2. The CDU/CSU is much more moderate nowadays - just like German society in general.  

From a strategic point of view, this is not necessarily a great development for the far-right and I'm surprised that many people don't see this. Having a single far-right party that polls between 10% and 15% for the price of an increasingly modern and liberal center-right party? Can this be a good thing? In the end, the former is more isolated than any other political formation in the history of the Bundestag whereas the latter is governing for 14 years now. One could even say that the rise of the AfD has pushed the entire German party system structurally to the left as there is no realistic chance of getting enough votes for a traditional center-right coalition (CDU/CSU-FDP) anymore.  

Now, when it comes to combating the AfD, the only useful method seems to ignore it and consequently isolate both its politicians and its members. Do not give them any screen time. Do not treat them as equals. Deplatform them. Destroy their support structures and networks. Any kind of attention (be it positive or negative) only gives the party a chance to influence the political agenda. I'm quite certain that the same would also work in many other European countries but, again, it's first and foremost the local context that is relevant here.

Also, I am a bit tired of this hyper-dramatic "the far-right will take over" narrative. I heard the same before the 2017 Dutch elections ("Wilders will win and the Netherlands will leave the EU") but Wilders lost. And I heard it before the 2017 French elections ("Le Pen will win and France will leave the EU") but Le Pen lost. More recently, the FPÖ lost almost 10% in the 2019 Austrian elections and the SVP shrunk for the first time in decades in the 2019 Swiss elections. Yes, party systems change and sometimes far-right parties can profit from it. But the same is equally true for liberal parties, green parties, regionalist parties, and even far-left parties (e.g. PODEMOS and SYRIZA a few years ago). There is no automatism of any sort.
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Pick Up the Phone
Jr. Member
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Posts: 428


« Reply #1 on: November 23, 2019, 02:54:01 PM »

Currently the far-right has taken that position of being in favour of the welfare state combined with tough immigration policies. In Belgium, i know many older social democrat voters who now vote for far-right parties. That's their problem.

But this is not the case everywhere. Far-right parties in Western Europe diverge on their positions on economic issues and the scope of the welfare state quite a lot; some are almost socialist while others preach the neoliberal gospel of privatization, deregulation, and low taxes for the wealthy. They also diverge on many other positions and I find it difficult to employ such a schematic view. I also doubt that many far-right voters are concerned with actual policies in the first place.
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