Recent years have seen a global rise of the far-right, particularly in Europe. Some far-right parties, whose ideologies are associated with radical to exclusionary nationalism, populism, authoritarianism, racism, xenophobia, and conspiracy theories, have achieved double-digit results and entered national parliaments. Moreover, some party leaders have adopted a “strongman” approach, undermining confidence in democratic systems by promising to end their perceived dysfunction. Their personalised style of politics blurs the traditional line between democracies and autocracies. Disinformation campaigns and accusations of “fake news” often accompany the rise of far-right parties, strengthening the strongmen’s grip on power.

The rise of far-right parties and strongman politics poses a significant threat to democratic systems, mainstreaming far-right ideologies and gradually eroding social norms. This is concerning as it could lead to a shift in what is considered acceptable in terms of ideas, language, and behaviour within society. Elected governments can and have erected legal barriers to protect democracy from extremist parties (militant democracies).

Against this background, the OxPol series aims to shed light on the reasons for and consequences of the rise of far-right politics, the strongman qualities of far-right leaders, and the possible responses or defences of (militant) democracies.

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Volatility Post-World War II Italian politics has often been marked by significant political instability and frequent changes of government. The twenty-first century period in Italian politics has been characterised by the emergence of new political forces, the decline of traditional parties, and persistent public policy challenges related to corruption, economic stagnation, and immigration (Albertazzi and Zulianello, 2021). Remarkably, Italy has had an astonishing 69 governments in 79 years. This means that on average, governments in Italy last for just over a year. Our forthcoming book “The Rise of the Radical Right in Italy: A New Balance of Power in the Right-Wing Camp” to be published by Columbia University Press and ibidem Press in June 2024 examines the more worrying trend …

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As the European Union (EU) steadily approaches the  2024 elections scheduled for June, attention is focused on the likely formation of a coalition between the conservatives (EPP) and the socialists (S&D). However, amidst this political landscape, a chorus of concern is emerging about the EU’s tendency towards authoritarianism, underlined in particular by democratic backsliding in Hungary and Italy (Pietrucci, 2023). Projections indicate a potential consolidation of influence by two far-right factions, namely the Identity and Democracy (ID) and European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), alongside the independent Hungarian Fidesz, amounting to a considerable 25 per cent share of parliamentary seats (Wax, 2024). Concurrently, the proliferation of radical ideologies within the EPP poses a significant challenge to the wider European sphere, with …

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Over the past two decades, the world has faced a series of crises including economic downturns, political disruptions exemplified by events such as the latest example of  the Covid-19 pandemic, which have generated a discourse around a perceived crisis in democratic governance. Due to its perceived association with these crises, populism has become a focal point of both academic inquiry and broader societal discourse, with a strong emphasis on its relationship with democracy (Mény & Surel, 2002). Scholarly investigations into populism have expanded to encompass various dimensions, including its conceptual underpinnings and implications for democratic systems. The existing literature on populism underscores its delineation along two main axes: the assertion of popular sovereignty and the espousal of anti-establishment sentiments. Despite …

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While the writing was already on the wall, the results from the Iowa Republican caucus and New Hampshire primary confirmed that Republican voters are willing to look past Donald Trump’s attempt at insurrection and numerous legal battles. As perplexing as it may be for liberals and Democrats, the GOP is all-in for Donald Trump. It seems that it is not only Trump’s message of White Christian nationalism that resonates with conservatives, although that is certainly part of his appeal. His election denialism has also struck a chord. Entrance polling ahead of the Iowa caucus found that a staggering 69% of caucus participants do not believe Biden won the election legitimately. But “Stop the Steal” applies to more than just the …

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A Dialogic Turn in Online Far-Right Activism Far-right groups, which encompass a broad plethora of cognate paramilitary groups, political parties and protest movements with nativist, authoritarian and populist policy platforms (Mudde 2007; Carter 2018), have increasingly been able to mobilise, exploit, and weaponise the online space for activism and their campaigns. Recent research suggests that such groups have been able to exercise an ‘opportunistic pragmatism’ when using online platforms, creating new hubs of convergence and influencing elections in countries like Germany, Italy and Sweden (Davey & Ebner 2017 & 2018; Colliver et al 2018). Just as examples of recent far-right successes in the electoral arena now abound, such cases also demonstrate a shift away from parochial concerns in using the …

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Hungary’s Mi Hazánk Mozgalom (Our Homeland Movement, MHM) party tells a classic tale of far-right politics. Formed after an internal dispute in the extreme-right Jobbik party, which had been in existence since 2003 and had begun to tone down its rhetoric, the MHM leadership’s plan was to occupy the supposedly vacant space on the far right of Hungarian politics. Despite being the third most successful list in the 2019 parliamentary elections, after Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz and the united opposition, led by Péter Márki-Zay, the party won only 2 out of 199 seats. MHM’s leader, László Toroczkai, is a respected figure on the Hungarian and international far-right scene, being one of the founders of the historically revisionist Sixty-Four Counties Youth Movement, …