Right-wing parties have achieved great success in the European elections in several countries. In France, right-wing successes even led to a political scandal. But: Pro-European parties clearly remain in the majority, as a look at the countries shows. An overview.
Italy, France, Germany, Austria and many more: right-wing parties won many seats in the European elections. As with the domestic election campaign, national issues dominated the elections internationally. This led to a political earthquake in France. Marine Le Pen’s Rassemblement National party clearly won, and President Emmanuel Macron subsequently called early elections for the National Assembly.
In Austria the FPÖ became the strongest force. In Germany, the AfD achieved its best result yet, coming second after the Union.
Rights win, pro-Europeans triumph
Across Europe, the two previous right-wing populist party alliances EKR and ID made significant gains. Overall, the clearly pro-European camp in the European Parliament remains by far the largest. Even if all right-wing parties came together, they would probably have fewer than 200 seats and would therefore be far from a majority. These are 361 seats.
The winner of the European elections is the centre-right EPP alliance with German top candidate Ursula von der Leyen. The CDU politician can hope for a second term as President of the European Commission.
Post-fascist clears the air
According to a forecast by the Rai television channel, Meloni’s party won 27.7 percent in Italy – an increase of more than 20 points compared to the 2019 European elections. A left-wing alliance around the Social Democratic PD came in second place with 23.7 percent.
Meloni was also the top candidate in the elections for the Fratelli d’Italia, which has its origins in the post-fascist movement. But she does not want to move to the European Parliament, choosing instead to remain in Rome as prime minister. The 47-year-old has been at the head of a coalition of three right-wing parties since October 2022. With the current result, their influence at European level is likely to increase.
The AfD is especially strong in the East
In Germany, the European elections were also an important test of sentiment ahead of the three state elections in Thuringia, Saxony and Brandenburg in September and the federal elections next year. The fact that the AfD is in first place in East Germany by a wide margin is particularly important.
Despite the controversy surrounding its top candidate, the party managed to make strong gains nationally. According to projections, this will be 15.8 to 15.9 percent, an increase of almost five points compared to 2019. She is doing better than all traffic light parties: the SPD received 14 percent, the Greens 11.9 percent and the FDP 5.1 percent. However, the Union comes first by a wide margin with 30.2 to 30.3 percent.
The AfD result was weaker than from surveys at the beginning of the year. Then it was now more than 20 percent. However, accusations against top candidate Maximilian Krah and number two on the European election list, Petr Bystron, put the party in trouble.
Hangover mood in Paris
The European elections are a bitter defeat for French President Macron. According to forecasts, the right-wing national party Rassemblement National (RN) around Marine Le Pen won around 32 percent – more than twice as much as Macron’s camp. As a result, the head of state announced new elections for the lower house, the two rounds of voting are scheduled for June 30 and July 7. “So at the end of this day, I can’t pretend like nothing happened,” he said.
Macron’s center camp was already weakened. Since 2022, there has been no absolute majority in the National Assembly. Since then, governance has been difficult. The focus is also on the presidential elections in about three years’ time. Macron, who defeated Le Pen twice in the second election, is no longer allowed to stand as a candidate. It is still unclear who the centrist forces will send into the race and who would have a chance against Le Pen. The daughter of right-wing extremist party founder Jean-Marie Le Pen has succeeded in creating a much more moderate image and making the party electable even among the middle class.
In Hungary, right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán managed to strengthen the supremacy of his Fidesz party. She is in the lead with 43.8 percent of the votes. In the Netherlands, right-wing populist Geert Wilders led his Eurosceptic Freedom Party (PVV) to second place and won six mandates.
Are new factions forming?
In principle, it could be that finding a majority in the European Parliament will become even more difficult. What is also relevant to the future balance of power there is the question of whether parties from the previous right-wing alliances EKR and ID could come together to form a new alliance. The French Marine Le Pen recently campaigned for this with Italian Prime Minister Meloni.
It is likely that the centre-right EPP alliance will hold talks with the Social Democrats, Liberals and Greens in the coming days to agree on a loose partnership that could then secure a majority for Von der Leyen’s election. Theoretically, possibilities for cooperation with individual right-wing parties could also be explored. The EPP did not rule out cooperation with Meloni before the elections. Until now, your Fratelli d’Italia belonged to the right-wing conservative EKR faction.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
