Anti-EU parties forecast to win European Parliament elections in nine member states
Anti-EU parties are on course to win the European Parliament elections in nine of the bloc’s member states, and to come second or third in another nine countries, according to the latest polls.
Political scientists and pollsters predicted a strong showing for populist Right-wing parties and a drop in backing for the pro-EU establishment in the June vote, which they warned could weaken EU support for Ukraine and the drive to hit net zero.
Eurosceptic parties will be the most successful in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Slovakia, according to the polling.
They are expected to come second or third in the vote in Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Sweden, according to the report by the European Council on Foreign Relations think tank.
The European Parliament’s hard-Right Identity and Democracy group, which includes France’s National Rally, the Alternative for Germany and Italy’s League was forecast to gain more than 30 new seats.
That would make it the third largest alliance in the parliament, toppling the Emmanuel Macron-dominated centrist group, Renew Europe.
The report’s authors said the radical Right would be more involved in EU decision-making than at any time since the European Parliament became directly elected in 1979.
“Against a backdrop of stirring populism, which may reach a new peak with the return of Donald Trump as US president later this year, parties of the political mainstream need to wake up and take clear stock of voter demands,” said Professor Simon Hix.
“They should make clear, on key issues relating to democracy and the rule of law, that it is they, and not those on the political fringes, who are best placed to protect fundamental European rights.”
The establishment centre-Right European People’s Party, which is firmly pro-EU, could be tempted to form a coalition with the eurosceptic forces and secure a Right-wing majority in the parliament, the report said.
Dr Kevin Cunningham said: “This could have significant implications for the European Commission and Council’s ability to take forward environmental and foreign policy commitments, including the next phase of the European Green Deal.”
