Populism

With the new government in place, everything is seemingly returning back to normal. Or is it? Two weeks after the Slovakian general elections, which stirred great European interest, Robert Fico forms his third government and is preparing to rule for another four more years…

German state elections held on 13th March produced significant levels of support for the Alternative for Germany (AfD), but where does the German party system stand overall after the elections?

What responses are being prescribed by Greens who hold office in places heavily affected by these developments?

MEP Sven Giegold looks back at 2015 and some of the key Green political fights on the European scene. He sheds light on what he thinks will be the 2016 key battlefields for the Greens and for Europe to survive nationalisms and populisms.

The Front National secured the largest share of the vote in the first round of the French regional elections on 6 December, but failed to win any regions in the second round. While the Front National is often regarded simply as a far-right party, Marine Le Pen has increasingly focused on the Front National’s role in defending liberal and republican values. This apparent liberalism reflects a wider trend across Europe for parties to cite liberal values as the basis for critiques of Islam.

The Left in Europe might be tempted to answer with Left-wing populism to the current return of borders and to the broader socioeconomic crisis. This is playing with fire. An escalation of populism would actually benefit Right-wing populism. Only a consistent Europeanisation led by the Left can respond to the 21st century challenges of Europe.

The conflicting messages of welcome displayed by the German government towards refugees is hindering integration processes, for the state, the refugees and the citizens. For the sake of all three, accepting the situation is the only way of moving forward.

It has been assumed the outcome of the Swiss elections demonstrated another parliamentary shift to the far-right in Europe. A deeper look however shows the complex web behind the Swiss electoral system and further highlights the self-defeating complications of the Swiss Green network.

In Poland, Right-wing parties (PiS) won the parliamentary elections on 25th October, leaving the centre-Right coalition (PO and PSL) that led the country for eight years in the opposition, and the Left out of the Parliament completely. But elections do not tell the whole story. The Polish political scene is changing. Parties of change and changes of parties animated the elections of this year. Citizens cast their complaints in the ballot box. Greens will need to draw lessons and determine their angle of attack for the future.

Although Greens in Austria have made considerable electoral breakthroughs, the recent municipal elections in Vienna showed that a considerable portion of this support is liable to abandon Greens when circumstances change and the discourse becomes more polarised. If Greens are to cement their place in the political landscape, they need to consolidate this support base and expand it in a way that is sustainable.