The historic comeback of Donald Trump as the President of the United States exemplifies that Right-wing leaders are on the rise globally. Several right-wing leaders who are known for taking Nationalist stands are gaining popular sentiments for tackling the menace of illegal immigration, wokeism, Radical Marxism, and Islamic extremism. While Nationalist global leaders who were already in power, like PM Modi, have solidified their position.
USA
The popular sentiment behind Donald Trump-led Republicans can be gauged from the fact that the party has won a clear majority in the presidency, Senate, and House. After President Grover Cleveland, Trump is only the second US President to make a comeback after losing an election. He has secured a non-consecutive second tenure. He has achieved this feat after a long gap of 132 years.
Donald Trump’s speeches and his ideas reflect a nationalist approach to the pressing issues in America and the world which is dubbed in his campaign slogan – MAGA – Make America Great Again.
Trump’s presidential victory confirms popular sentiments against the woke and illegal immigrants. A sentiment that became the prime reason for the rise of right-wing leaders and parties in Europe. Before America, a similar trend was seen in snap Parliamentary elections held in France.
France
The right-wing party – National Rally (RN) led by Marine Le Pen became the popular choice after Emmanuel Macron announced snap elections. However, after sweeping the first round of elections with over 33 percent of votes, the party finished third in the final round as the two political players joined forces to stop the advent of Le Pen’s party.
Despite, standing in third position, RN proved to be a strong force as vindicated by the massive wave of the political right. Macron’s centrist Ensemble and ultra-left New Popular Front joined hands to defeat Marine Le Pen and they pulled 200 candidates out of the race to avoid a trilateral contest and RN’s victory.
However, at last, the stability of the French coalition government depends on the support of conservatives only. Earlier in June, RN had swept European Parliament elections in France with the highest 31.37 percent votes.
Although Le Pen became comparatively soft on the party’s staunch stance from the times of his father, it continued to bid for trade protectionism and stern policy on illegal immigration. RN’s prime ministerial candidate Jordan Bardella made an electoral promise to ban dual nationals from state jobs.
Italy
Georgia Meloni’s rise to power is associated with her fierce stance against illegal immigration, multi-gender, LGBTQ lobby, and other crucial issues. The state sponsorship of such issues, severely compromising the matters of national and economic interests created resentment in the masses. It left no choice but to elect a reasonable voice that come with a conservative ideology.
This echoed in Meloni’s victory statement, “Italians have sent a clear message in favour of a right-wing government led by Brothers of Italy.”
Notably, like other Western countries, the woke culture, illegal Islamic immigrants and protectionism were some of the decisive factors in Italy’s political landscape and Meloni’s strong pro-nationalist approach succeeded in winning favour of the voters. She ferociously had said, “Yes to the natural family, no to the LGBT lobby, yes to sexual identity, no to gender ideology… no to Islamist violence, yes to secure borders, no to mass migration… no to big international finance… no to the bureaucrats of Brussels!”
Germany
Talking about another big power of Europe, Germany is also experiencing the rise of right wing party. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) the young right movement is getting the attention of the public, especially at a time when the country’s economy is constrained while it continues to be the second biggest supplier of weaponry to Ukraine after the USA. People have time and again resented to hefty drain of money and resources. Besides, the crumbling social fabric leading to the anti-immigrant sentiment among the public is also one of the prominent reasons for the rise of the political right wing.
The AfD is not in govt, it rules local and municipal bodies. In September, AfD secured unprecedented pluralities in regional elections in three eastern states, claiming 32 percent of the vote in Thuringia, 30 percent in Saxony, and 28 percent in Brandenburg, marking its best performance so far.
Although, the current political landscape of coalitions between non-right parties make it highly unlikely for AfD to gain power but it is not impossible.
Centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader Friedrich Merz recently said that his party could enter into local agreements with the AfD before taking retracting his statements. His statement, the collapse of the Scholz govt, early elections have increased the stakes for AfD.
Nonetheless, whatever the outcome may be, it is clear that people want to be led by anti-immigrant and nationalist government. This strong feeling has become even more firm in recent times as Germany’s Hamburg recently saw an Islamist takeover of the streets demanding Caliphate and Sharia imposition in the country. It must also be noted here that AfD is a thorn in the eyes of left-liberals because it is essentially against NATO, and America and is pro-Russia. It wants American forces and NATO missions out of the country.
Netherlands
The most inspirational victory for the far-right came from the Netherlands, where Geert Wilders, heading the Party For Freedom (PVV) went to elections with the sole agenda of anti-Islam and anti-immigration. His call was widely accepted across the length and breadth of the country with PVV emerging as the biggest party in November 2023 election with 26.79 percent votes and 37 of the total 150 seats. After much negotiations, the right wing coalition formed the Dutch govt.
Notably, the rise in Islamic extremism across Europe and the inability of the erstwhile ruling left, liberals to deal with it due to inhibition of being politically correct gave impetus to Geet Wilders.
In line with the rise of political right, other countries including Hungary, Croatia, Czech Republic have the right wing government.
After years of liberalisation and socialism, finally, the world is turning towards the right. The right-wing political parties are the strongest ever in Europe and boosting the economy in the largest democracy in India.
Political system like any other is worth when it provides what is desired and to make it worth, political parties try to build a regime based on a specific ideology– a set of ideas. With the emergence of Classical Liberalism and Socialism during the early period of modern history, the ideological spectrum of centre and left took over the entire world.
However, intriguing it may be, the left lost its relevance when it failed to address the popular concerns in Russia, and East Europe. In contrast, the centrist states or liberal states assimilated the important traits of the left and revisited itself to remain dominant with their ideas of democracy, freedom, and rights among others. Despite, being antagonistic to each other, the left and liberal, strictly speaking, historically came together when they fought against the right.
The earliest form of far-right regimes in modern history are indeed Nazism and Fascism, but accrediting the whole right as these are nothing but either ignorance or hatred that can only thwart the cycle of change.
What must be understood with the rise of the political right wing is that the idea of globalised world, humanitarian welcome and other liberal ideas are values till the time they don’t import the ill effects and consequences. In Europe, the excessive drain of money and resources to Ukraine with no outcome for native Europeans whatsoever creates a national issue of its own. But instead of addressing it with reason, the long-ruling left/liberal parties try to deflect the issue with the same value-based argument causing even more resentment.
Also, in Europe, the left and liberals have long worked to keep the right away from governance. This collective effort is called firewall in Europe, famously called cordon sanitaire in French. This strategy has essentially painted the right in a bad light across Europe. But they forgot that nationalism and native right ideology is not the only political right, rather rising Islamic fanaticism in Europe is the far right.
This takes us to an understanding that within the ideological spectrum, political right can pragmatically be classified into two types. While one is more likely a native right, the other is an extremist right, the biggest example of which is Islamic fundamentalism across the world.
Though largely unspoken of, this classification poses a clear option to native Europeans to either elect left/liberals and wait for Islamic fundamentalists to takeover or choose a native right govt that can assure the safety of their national interests.