The rise of European far-right parties and its incentives
Abstract:
This thesis aims at analysing the incentives of the rise of far-right parties through the result of 2014 European election. The main argument is that it is not a signal of the rise of far-right ideology but rather due to the strategic transformation of far-right parties and the current socio-economic situation in Europe, far-right parties were provided with a chance to attract more median voters.
Over 6 decades, The European Union had its marvellous metamorphosis from ECSC to nowadays the sui generis partially supranational organization. However, the transformation was definitely not smooth and it was also haunted by a large number of difficulties to which every international organisation is destined to face. The submission of national sovereignty has been the essential topic since the establishment of European Union. The Father of EU, Jean Monnet, once had a blueprint of building up a complete supranational organisation to unite Europe. However, it has not become the United States of Europe after a series of attempts. The European Council and the Council of European Union which are the two main organs reflecting the Intergovernmental features still possess a huge power in the decision making process. Although the gradually increasing power of the European Parliament and the Qualified Majority Voting in the Council reflect the determination of the EU on transforming itself to a real supranational organisation, the resistance on the member states level has been the thorny obstacle. France responded the ground-breaking introduction of Qualified Majority Voting in the Council with Empty Chair Crisis in order to protest that the majority rule instead of unanimity in the Council would greatly diminish the sovereignty of France. The failed move toward European defence and political community in 1950s and the unratified Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe will always remind Brussels that yes to the internal market but no to the European federation. The pioneers in this resistance movement are the numerous Eurosceptic and Far-right parties in Europe.
The Far-right parties form a very diverse family. Some have roots in the Fascist and Nazi movements, like the German Republikaner, the French National Front or the Flemish Vlaams Belange; others are radicalised parliamentary rights such as the Austrian FPÖ, the Norwegian Progress Party , the Danish and the Swiss People´s Party. (Lubbers,2001 ; Carter , 2005 ; Geschwend al.,2012). Their core ideology is a mixture of authoritarianism, anti-elite populism and what Cas Muddle defines as “nativism”, an ideology which holds that states should be inhabited exclusively by members of the native group (“the nation”) and that non-native elements (persons and ideas) are fundamentally threatening to the nation-state´s homogeneity (Mudde,2007, P. 19).
Since the end of the 1980s Europe has seen the electoral rise of parties on the far right (Mayer, 2013). However, different (and the same) parties in different (and the same) countries have experienced ups and downs at the ballot boxes. In some EU countries, far-right parties have been more than one-off protest parties but have enjoyed a de facto institutionalisation in European party politics (e.g Austria , Italy , Denmark , Switzerland and France) . In contrast , a number of EU Member states have experienced quite sudden recent and somewhat unexpected breakthrough of far right parties , thereby conveying the pan-European picture of an ever broader and receptive electoral for this political family (e.g Sweden , Finland , the Netherlands, and Hungary) . There are also countries (Germany and Great Britain) where far-right parties have only secured small percentages of the vote and are seen as “beyond the pale” by most voters and civil society. In Mediterranean countries, far-right parties have emerged but with little electoral success and stature. Nevertheless, the far-right Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) increased its share of the vote in 2007 and entered the Greek national parliament(Wilson and Hainsworth , 2012).
Hostility towards the process of European Integration is generally considered to constitute one of the hallmarks of the far right “family” but they are now actively pursuing engagement with the European Union, especially the European Parliament, as a means of advancing their own strategic interests and boosting their finances ( McGowan , 2012) , which is specifically reflected in the 2014 European elections.
2014 European elections result
It has been a great year for Far-right Parties. After the result came out, media have been bombarded the whole world with titles highlighting the triumph of Far-right parties. Indeed, comparing with the 2009 European elections, the turnout had a small increase but the amount of supporters of Far-right parties had a leap. The French far-right party Front Nationale undoubtedly is the superstar in this race. Its “No to Brussels , Yes to France” campaign slogan successfully attracted 24.8% voters , which left other parties behind in France and guaranteed that Marine Le Penn will have 25 seats of France´s 74 seats. Looking back to the European election in 2009, Front Nationale only won 6.3%. The other European Far-right parties also had a harvest in the European elections this year. The Danish People´s Party won 26.7% comparing with 15.28% in 2009. The support to the Austria Freedom Party increased by 7.3% from 12.7% in 2009 to 20% in 2014. The Greek far-right party facing a number of criminal charges, including murder, had 9.4% this year but in 2009, it only got 0.5%. All in all, it seems to draw a picture which will not make anyone happy but the far-right parties and their supporters.
Shall we be afraid of the rise of the Far-right parties
Although the Far-right parties had a triumph in the 2014 elections, the possible incentives behind this shining façade need to be observed. Firstly, due to the large constituency of European election, the final result is relatively stable comparing to the election in 2009. The pro-EU parties still dominate the parliament with EPP seized 211 seats out of 571 seats. Secondly, the previous “prominent students” in the far-right parties – British National Party (BNP) and the Freedom Party of the Netherlands lost in the race to the European Parliament. BNP only gained 1.1% of votes comparing to its 6.2% votes in 2009 and lost its two seats in the European Parliament. Meanwhile the Freedom Party of the Netherlands dropped from 17% in 2009 to 12.2% this year.
When it comes to the reasons for the rise of the Far-right parties this year, then it is a mixture of shift of strategy and current situation. It is difficult to characterise the victory of Front Nationale as a signal of the change of the society but it is rather the strategic transformation of Marine Le Pen in order to attract more median voters.
Apart from the fact that Marine Le Pen transcended the “radical right gender gap” which means the far right gets more support from men than women (Givens , 2004) The “de-demonisation” stragtegy developed by Marine Le Pen since her election at the head of the party, which is to soften the party´s image, make it credible on other issues than immigration, and diversify its election audience(Mayer 2013) reflects on the campaign slogan of Front Nationale this year. Instead of waving its racism flag, the Front Nationale under the leadership of Marine Le Pen is more focus on defending the so called “European value” and attacking the EU and its bureaucracy. The new far rights claim that they have no connection whatsoever with the old extreme rights. Confronting their critics, they present themselves as the defenders of equality, liberty and tolerance against their main enemy, Islam, describe as a religion of fanaticism and intolerance , incompatible with democratic values and Western culture. They claim that they defend the rights of women ,beaten up ,mutilated and ill-treated by Muslim men (Mayer,2013). It has been a golden rule for far-right parties to regards themselves as the “ a defender of European civilisation and particularly from what is deems under increasing attack from both new waves of immigration (Goodwin, 2011, p.56) and Islam (BNP website http://www.bnp.org.uk/news/return-clash-civilization)” (McGowan , 2012). On the other hand, Marine Le Pen seems to be taking a similar turn , condemning anti-Semitism , adopting gay-friendly position ( She has said several times for instance that “today in our suburbs , it´s not easy to be a Jews, a homosexual, or just simply a woman) and presenting herself as a defender of the French secular republican model she considers threatened by Muslims.
More than anti-immigration in order to defend European civilization, the European Union is also the main target which far-right parties oppose. Criticism has been targeted towards the bureaucracy of the Commission, the overpaid and absentee MEPs and increasingly the member state governments who are labelled as “Collaborating agents” with Brussels (McGowan). Especially, under the Euro crisis, this criticism has been agreed upon by more and more economically depressed European citizens.
However, this has obviously showed that apart from the fanatic and loyal supporters of far-right parties, the median voters might agree on some certain issues concerning on the current situation but it is impossible for them to embrace the far-right ideology. Additionally, the massacre that occurred in 2012 in Oslo and Utoya has demonstrated that far-right ideologies are a danger for the whole society and not only for minorities (Wilson and Hainsworth , 2012). Besides , the minority seats of far-right parties in European parliament would hardly affect the functioning of European Union either , although the far-right parties have successfully stood in the limelight through the European elections and acquired more power to influence the national governments.
Conclusion
The rise of far-right parties in 2014 European elections might be astonishing, but it can hardly be consider as an ideological change among European citizens. Meanwhile, it should not be ignored by decision-makers both in European states and European Union. Deepening the improvement and reformation should be the lesson for the European institutions; otherwise nothing can prevent far-right parties from prevailing in the next five years.
This thesis aims at analysing the incentives of the rise of far-right parties through the result of 2014 European election. The main argument is that it is not a signal of the rise of far-right ideology but rather due to the strategic transformation of far-right parties and the current socio-economic situation in Europe, far-right parties were provided with a chance to attract more median voters.
Over 6 decades, The European Union had its marvellous metamorphosis from ECSC to nowadays the sui generis partially supranational organization. However, the transformation was definitely not smooth and it was also haunted by a large number of difficulties to which every international organisation is destined to face. The submission of national sovereignty has been the essential topic since the establishment of European Union. The Father of EU, Jean Monnet, once had a blueprint of building up a complete supranational organisation to unite Europe. However, it has not become the United States of Europe after a series of attempts. The European Council and the Council of European Union which are the two main organs reflecting the Intergovernmental features still possess a huge power in the decision making process. Although the gradually increasing power of the European Parliament and the Qualified Majority Voting in the Council reflect the determination of the EU on transforming itself to a real supranational organisation, the resistance on the member states level has been the thorny obstacle. France responded the ground-breaking introduction of Qualified Majority Voting in the Council with Empty Chair Crisis in order to protest that the majority rule instead of unanimity in the Council would greatly diminish the sovereignty of France. The failed move toward European defence and political community in 1950s and the unratified Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe will always remind Brussels that yes to the internal market but no to the European federation. The pioneers in this resistance movement are the numerous Eurosceptic and Far-right parties in Europe.
The Far-right parties form a very diverse family. Some have roots in the Fascist and Nazi movements, like the German Republikaner, the French National Front or the Flemish Vlaams Belange; others are radicalised parliamentary rights such as the Austrian FPÖ, the Norwegian Progress Party , the Danish and the Swiss People´s Party. (Lubbers,2001 ; Carter , 2005 ; Geschwend al.,2012). Their core ideology is a mixture of authoritarianism, anti-elite populism and what Cas Muddle defines as “nativism”, an ideology which holds that states should be inhabited exclusively by members of the native group (“the nation”) and that non-native elements (persons and ideas) are fundamentally threatening to the nation-state´s homogeneity (Mudde,2007, P. 19).
Since the end of the 1980s Europe has seen the electoral rise of parties on the far right (Mayer, 2013). However, different (and the same) parties in different (and the same) countries have experienced ups and downs at the ballot boxes. In some EU countries, far-right parties have been more than one-off protest parties but have enjoyed a de facto institutionalisation in European party politics (e.g Austria , Italy , Denmark , Switzerland and France) . In contrast , a number of EU Member states have experienced quite sudden recent and somewhat unexpected breakthrough of far right parties , thereby conveying the pan-European picture of an ever broader and receptive electoral for this political family (e.g Sweden , Finland , the Netherlands, and Hungary) . There are also countries (Germany and Great Britain) where far-right parties have only secured small percentages of the vote and are seen as “beyond the pale” by most voters and civil society. In Mediterranean countries, far-right parties have emerged but with little electoral success and stature. Nevertheless, the far-right Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) increased its share of the vote in 2007 and entered the Greek national parliament(Wilson and Hainsworth , 2012).
Hostility towards the process of European Integration is generally considered to constitute one of the hallmarks of the far right “family” but they are now actively pursuing engagement with the European Union, especially the European Parliament, as a means of advancing their own strategic interests and boosting their finances ( McGowan , 2012) , which is specifically reflected in the 2014 European elections.
2014 European elections result
It has been a great year for Far-right Parties. After the result came out, media have been bombarded the whole world with titles highlighting the triumph of Far-right parties. Indeed, comparing with the 2009 European elections, the turnout had a small increase but the amount of supporters of Far-right parties had a leap. The French far-right party Front Nationale undoubtedly is the superstar in this race. Its “No to Brussels , Yes to France” campaign slogan successfully attracted 24.8% voters , which left other parties behind in France and guaranteed that Marine Le Penn will have 25 seats of France´s 74 seats. Looking back to the European election in 2009, Front Nationale only won 6.3%. The other European Far-right parties also had a harvest in the European elections this year. The Danish People´s Party won 26.7% comparing with 15.28% in 2009. The support to the Austria Freedom Party increased by 7.3% from 12.7% in 2009 to 20% in 2014. The Greek far-right party facing a number of criminal charges, including murder, had 9.4% this year but in 2009, it only got 0.5%. All in all, it seems to draw a picture which will not make anyone happy but the far-right parties and their supporters.
Shall we be afraid of the rise of the Far-right parties
Although the Far-right parties had a triumph in the 2014 elections, the possible incentives behind this shining façade need to be observed. Firstly, due to the large constituency of European election, the final result is relatively stable comparing to the election in 2009. The pro-EU parties still dominate the parliament with EPP seized 211 seats out of 571 seats. Secondly, the previous “prominent students” in the far-right parties – British National Party (BNP) and the Freedom Party of the Netherlands lost in the race to the European Parliament. BNP only gained 1.1% of votes comparing to its 6.2% votes in 2009 and lost its two seats in the European Parliament. Meanwhile the Freedom Party of the Netherlands dropped from 17% in 2009 to 12.2% this year.
When it comes to the reasons for the rise of the Far-right parties this year, then it is a mixture of shift of strategy and current situation. It is difficult to characterise the victory of Front Nationale as a signal of the change of the society but it is rather the strategic transformation of Marine Le Pen in order to attract more median voters.
Apart from the fact that Marine Le Pen transcended the “radical right gender gap” which means the far right gets more support from men than women (Givens , 2004) The “de-demonisation” stragtegy developed by Marine Le Pen since her election at the head of the party, which is to soften the party´s image, make it credible on other issues than immigration, and diversify its election audience(Mayer 2013) reflects on the campaign slogan of Front Nationale this year. Instead of waving its racism flag, the Front Nationale under the leadership of Marine Le Pen is more focus on defending the so called “European value” and attacking the EU and its bureaucracy. The new far rights claim that they have no connection whatsoever with the old extreme rights. Confronting their critics, they present themselves as the defenders of equality, liberty and tolerance against their main enemy, Islam, describe as a religion of fanaticism and intolerance , incompatible with democratic values and Western culture. They claim that they defend the rights of women ,beaten up ,mutilated and ill-treated by Muslim men (Mayer,2013). It has been a golden rule for far-right parties to regards themselves as the “ a defender of European civilisation and particularly from what is deems under increasing attack from both new waves of immigration (Goodwin, 2011, p.56) and Islam (BNP website http://www.bnp.org.uk/news/return-clash-civilization)” (McGowan , 2012). On the other hand, Marine Le Pen seems to be taking a similar turn , condemning anti-Semitism , adopting gay-friendly position ( She has said several times for instance that “today in our suburbs , it´s not easy to be a Jews, a homosexual, or just simply a woman) and presenting herself as a defender of the French secular republican model she considers threatened by Muslims.
More than anti-immigration in order to defend European civilization, the European Union is also the main target which far-right parties oppose. Criticism has been targeted towards the bureaucracy of the Commission, the overpaid and absentee MEPs and increasingly the member state governments who are labelled as “Collaborating agents” with Brussels (McGowan). Especially, under the Euro crisis, this criticism has been agreed upon by more and more economically depressed European citizens.
However, this has obviously showed that apart from the fanatic and loyal supporters of far-right parties, the median voters might agree on some certain issues concerning on the current situation but it is impossible for them to embrace the far-right ideology. Additionally, the massacre that occurred in 2012 in Oslo and Utoya has demonstrated that far-right ideologies are a danger for the whole society and not only for minorities (Wilson and Hainsworth , 2012). Besides , the minority seats of far-right parties in European parliament would hardly affect the functioning of European Union either , although the far-right parties have successfully stood in the limelight through the European elections and acquired more power to influence the national governments.
Conclusion
The rise of far-right parties in 2014 European elections might be astonishing, but it can hardly be consider as an ideological change among European citizens. Meanwhile, it should not be ignored by decision-makers both in European states and European Union. Deepening the improvement and reformation should be the lesson for the European institutions; otherwise nothing can prevent far-right parties from prevailing in the next five years.
All opinions and views expressed in the articles on this website are the opinions of the designated authors only and do not reflect the opinions or views of the Current Affairs Society itself in any way.
Sources
Cater, E. (2005) The Extreme Right in Western Europe: Success or Failure? Manchester, Manchester University Press
Geschwend, T. , Lo, J. and Proksch , S-O. (2012) “A common Left-Right Scale for voters and Parties in Europe” , accessed at conference.mpsanct.org/papers/archive.../111007 on 6 July 2012
Givens, T.E (2004) “ The Radical Right Gender Gap” Comparative Political Studies, 37 :30-54
Goodwin, M. J. (2011) , Right Response: Understanding and Countering Populist Extremism in Europe(London: A Chatham House Report
Lubbers, M.(2001) Exclusionistic Electorates , Extreme Right-wing Voting in Western Europe , Nijmegen , KUN/ICS
Mayer , N. (2013) From Jean-Marie to Marine Le Pen: Electoral Change on the Far Right , Parliamentary Affairs(2013)66
McGowan, L. (2012) Engaging with the European Union? Exploring the Europeanization of the British National Party , Parliamentary Affairs on 5 October 2012
Muddle, C. (2007) Populist Radical Right Parties in Europe , Cambridge, Cambridge University Press
Wilson, R. and Hainsworth, P. (2012) Far-right Parties and discourse in Europe : A challenge for our times , European Network Against Racism
http://www.bnp.org.uk/news/return-clash-civilization)
Cater, E. (2005) The Extreme Right in Western Europe: Success or Failure? Manchester, Manchester University Press
Geschwend, T. , Lo, J. and Proksch , S-O. (2012) “A common Left-Right Scale for voters and Parties in Europe” , accessed at conference.mpsanct.org/papers/archive.../111007 on 6 July 2012
Givens, T.E (2004) “ The Radical Right Gender Gap” Comparative Political Studies, 37 :30-54
Goodwin, M. J. (2011) , Right Response: Understanding and Countering Populist Extremism in Europe(London: A Chatham House Report
Lubbers, M.(2001) Exclusionistic Electorates , Extreme Right-wing Voting in Western Europe , Nijmegen , KUN/ICS
Mayer , N. (2013) From Jean-Marie to Marine Le Pen: Electoral Change on the Far Right , Parliamentary Affairs(2013)66
McGowan, L. (2012) Engaging with the European Union? Exploring the Europeanization of the British National Party , Parliamentary Affairs on 5 October 2012
Muddle, C. (2007) Populist Radical Right Parties in Europe , Cambridge, Cambridge University Press
Wilson, R. and Hainsworth, P. (2012) Far-right Parties and discourse in Europe : A challenge for our times , European Network Against Racism
http://www.bnp.org.uk/news/return-clash-civilization)