Christian Democrats and socialists resist in Europe. von der Leyen’s center-right Christian Democrat bloc dominated in Germany with almost 30%, overtaking Scholz’s Social Democrats, who fell to 14%, behind the AfD. In Italy, the extreme right advanced with Meloni.
The extreme right parties made important advances in the parliamentary elections of the European Union on Sunday, dealing surprising defeats to two of the bloc’s most important leaders: French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
In France, the party Marine Le Pen National Group dominated the polls to such an extent that Macron He immediately dissolved the national Parliament and called new elections. It was a huge political risk, since his party could suffer further losses, weighing down the rest of his presidential term, which ends in 2027.
Le Pen gladly accepted the challenge. “We are ready to right the country, ready to defend the interests of the French, ready to end mass immigration,” he said, echoing the rallying cry of so many far-right leaders in other countries celebrating substantial victories.
Macron recognized the thud of defeat. “I have heard your message, your concerns, and I will not leave them unanswered,” he said, adding that calling early elections only underlined his democratic credibility.
In Germanythe most populous nation in the 27-member bloc, projections suggested that the AfD surpassed the series of scandals in which its main candidate was involved to rise to 16.5%, compared to 11% in 2019. In comparison, the combined result of the three parties in the German ruling coalition barely exceeded 30% .
ScholzHe suffered such an inauspicious fate that his veteran social democratic party was left behind the far-right Alternative for Germany, which rose to second place. “After all the doomsday prophecies, after the barrage of recent weeks, we are the second force,” declared an exultant Alice Weidel, leader of the AfD.
The four days of elections in 27 EU countries They have been the second largest democratic exercise in the world, behind the recent elections in India. In the end, the rise of the far right was even more astonishing than many analysts predicted.
For decades, the European Union, which has its roots in the defeat of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, confined the far right to the political margins. With its strong presence in these elections, the extreme right could become a important actor in politics ranging from migration to security and climate.
Bucking the trend was the former EU leader and current Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, which overtook Law and Justice, the national conservative party that governed Poland between 2015 and 2023, and pushed it further and further to the right. A poll showed that Tusk’s party won with 38%, compared to 34% for his bitter nemesis.
“From these big and ambitious countries, from the leaders of the EU, Poland has shown that democracy, honesty and Europe triumph here,” Tusk told his followers. “I am very excited.”
