The far right is advancing in Europe. Georgia Meloni rules in Italy, support for the AfD is rising in Germany, the cordon sanitaire ended in Sweden and, recently, there has been an even bigger rise of Vox in Spain. All of this is part of what Cas Mudde, a political scientist expert in the European far-right, defines as the fourth wave of the post-war extreme right, which began in the 21st century and is characterized by the normalization of radical right-wing parties.
Are we seeing the crest of this fourth wave?
Not necessarily. But we are seeing a radicalization of the traditional right in several countries, as is the case for example with the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom. In other cases, as in Italy, we see it in the shift from the mainstream right to the radical right, and in most countries we see both: a radicalization of the mainstream right but not becoming a fully radical right , as is the case of Hungary or the USA. Or the emergence of a radical right, as in Spain or Sweden.
Vox doubled its voters in the last election. If in 2019 it was said that Catalonia was the main cause of its success, what are the causes now?
The Catalan question created a space for an ultra-right party, which for some reason immigration had not achieved. At the same time, Vox was never a party that only dealt with Catalonia. It was a party of right-wing people frustrated with the Popular Party because of corruption and partly because the PP was not right-wing enough. And then he benefited from the covid and that’s how he built his brand in those years. It is important to note that Vox did not really advance compared to the last national election. Rather, it consolidated its space on a local scale. And it will stay with us for a while.
And the economic reasons?
In the early days Vox was disproportionately endorsed by the wealthiest. Even if poor people vote for the far right, it does not mean that they do so for economic reasons. Much of the white working class, for example, lives in the most multicultural areas, where there has been less investment. I’m not saying that the economy doesn’t play a role, at all, but the far right often uses it to say that if you’re poor it’s because of immigrants. Then they win.
What would be the three ideas to defeat the extreme right?
First of all, the most important thing is not to focus on defeating the far right, but on strengthening liberal democracy. If the ultra-right is defeated, the dissatisfaction remains there. If satisfaction with liberal democracy strengthens, support for the far-right is reduced. Second, it is necessary to provide ideological programs that inspire. And, third, be consistent and live up to your actions. Much of the success of the far right is related to the failures of others. Think about Spain: without the PP’s massive corruption scandal, Vox probably wouldn’t be so successful. Without the massive corruption of the social democrats in Hungary and Poland, the far right probably wouldn’t be in power either.
One way to deal with the ultra-right is through sanitary cordons. What is the responsibility of the PP in the survival of Vox?
The biggest responsibility. A party like Vox, which largely defines itself as a right-wing party, will govern mainly or almost exclusively with the PP, which is why this gives power and responsibility to the PP. The sanitary cord only works in the early stages, when the far right is small and has just started. This opportunity was wasted years ago, because, after a month of the first Vox results, the PP was ready to talk to them. The responsibility of the PP is to do what a democratic liberal right-wing party does, and therefore, if it governs with Vox or with the support of Vox, that it always governs within the limits of liberal democracy. And this does not mean that immigration cannot be limited. But if you limit immigration, you do so while defending the human rights of immigrants without using nativist rhetoric.
Are far-right parties fueling hostile sexism?
Yes. But they are not the only ones. The so-called gender ideology is a very popular term in the Global South and particularly in Spain and Latin America. It is the idea that the whole concept of gender, femininity and masculinity is a kind of ploy by cultural Marxists to weaken the nation.
How dangerous is this speech?
Initially, the far right was what we call benevolent sexist in that men were seen as physically strong and women as weak. And it was up to men to protect women. Political violence against women was unacceptable because violence is not used against the weak. Now women are seen as powerful and violence against them has become legitimate. We have seen an increase in male supremacist or incel (involuntarily celibate) violence, especially, but not exclusively, in the US. This is dangerous. However, I believe that the threat to the LGTBQ community is greater, and even more so against trans people.
Does the Russian invasion of Ukraine benefit the far right?
Not necessarily in politics in general. But I think it has had an influence on a European scale. It has broken the alliance between PiS (Poland) and Fidesz (Hungary), which were close to creating a European far-right group for the European elections in 2024. This is now unlikely, and it is a big step because , if the two forces had joined, it would have been a group that could not only have potentially obtained up to 25% of the vote and be the second largest group in the European Parliament, but would also have free seats in the Council European, which includes two important countries in Europe: Poland and Italy, and then Hungary. And so, with the minor parties in Sweden and potentially in Spain, this group could have played a major role in the European institutions. ECR remains a very important group, but without Identity and Democracy for the seats in Parliament and without Viktor Orbán for the seat in the Council it is much less powerful and relevant.
