Europe could soon have a new far-right prime minister as Geert Wilders emerged victorious in the historic Dutch election on Wednesday. Wilders’ Party for Freedom won 37 seats in the country’s 150-seat legislature, marking the largest single bloc. This significant win places Wilders ahead of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s conservative People’s Party and the left-wing Labour-Green coalition.
Historically an opponent of immigration and skeptical of European Union influence over national decisions, Wilders has maintained a firm stance against Islam and the EU. “We will make sure that the Netherlands will be for the Dutch people again. We will restrict the asylum tsunami and migration. People will have more money in their wallets again,” he stated at a recent campaign rally.
Wilders’ party, although historically unsuccessful in previous elections, has now achieved a landslide victory, marking a watershed moment, according to George Tzogopoulos, a lecturer at the European Institute in Nice. The party’s anti-immigration stance has gained traction, particularly due to rising energy inflation stemming from the Ukraine war and sanctions against Russian oil, prompting disenchanted voters to rally behind Wilders.
As Wilders prepares to form a government, he will need to secure coalition partners that collectively represent a majority of seats in the legislature. If he succeeds, he would be Europe’s first far-right leader to head a government since Italy’s Georgia Meloni came to power. However, some believe that the exercise of ruling may temper his extremist politics, as seen with Meloni, who continued to support Ukraine despite being an anti-immigration, Eurosceptic politician.
The rise of the far-right in Europe is evident in the swelling support for authoritarian, anti-immigrant, anti-globalist, Eurosceptic, populist parties, which were previously marginal but have gained momentum due to the global financial crisis, the surge in refugee arrivals in 2015, and mounting inflation. Parties associated with the far-right have taken the lead in Italy and possibly soon in the Netherlands.
Apart from the Netherlands, the far-right has surged in Hungary, Poland, Germany, Finland, the UK, Austria, France, Italy and Slovakia, with some countries experiencing shifts away from authoritarianism. In Poland, the ruling conservative party failed to secure a majority in recent elections, signifying a potential shift in power.
The emergence of far-right leaders and the shift to the right across Europe reflect the broader political landscape. The rise of such leaders presents a concerning trend, indicating the potential formation of alliances and the hardening of positions on immigration and asylum, which, according to some experts, is likely to continue.