Subterms
For much of the past decade, radical right-wing populism in the Netherlands has largely been associated with Geert Wilders and his Party for Freedom (PVV). Following in the footsteps of the late Pim Fortuyn, Wilders established himself as one of Western Europe’s most outspoken promoters of anti-Islamic rhetoric, whose often outrageous and inflammatory rants exerted […] More
History is not short of examples of autocrats who used a crisis to strengthen their grip on power. Our current crisis, triggered by the global spread of the new coronavirus, appears to be no different. Justified by the need for extraordinary measures to address the pandemic, on March 30 the Hungarian parliament approved an emergency […] More
On February 23, Hamburg’s voters were called upon to elect a new parliament. Hamburg is Germany’s second-largest city and its most important port. But, for historical reasons, it is also one of Germany’s 16 Länder, and one of three city-states (the other two are Berlin and Bremen), that compose the Federal Republic. The Social Democrats […] More
France is in chaos. For the last five years, the land of wine, cheese and chateaux has dominated headlines for all the wrong reasons: a series of terror attacks, the yearlong mobilization by the gilets jaunes, and now the longest transport strike in over two decades that crippled Île-de-France (greater Paris region) amid growing social […] More
The radical-right Progress Party (FRP) withdrew from Norway’s coalition government on January 20. This is a big defeat for FRP leader Siv Jensen, whose big ambition was to prove his party was koalitionsfähig, or “coalition capable.” After six years in government, the conflict between the populist radicals and the more moderate wing of the party […] More
In early 2017, Europe’s far-right parliamentary bloc met in Koblenz, Germany, to plot its political future. The meeting of the bloc’s leaders — which included Marine le Pen from France, Matteo Salvini from Italy and Geert Wilders from the Netherlands — took place shortly after the inauguration of US President Donald Trump. The group was […] More
The regional election held in Emilia Romagna on January 26 was not simply a local affair. The election saw the incumbent governor, Stefano Bonaccini, of the center-left coalition’s Democratic Party (PD), take 51,4% of the vote — a win that will have far-reaching consequences in Italy and Europe. In the last weeks, Emilia Romagna was the […] More
In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin is proposing a new constitution. Meanwhile, in Washington, US President Donald Trump is disposing of the old constitution. The first is a demonstration of power meant to showcase the unity of the Russian political system behind a strong leader. The second is an act of desperation that reveals the […] More
