One in four Europeans vote for hard-right parties as support doubles in ten years

By SABRINA PENTY, FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER Published: 12:28, 25 June 2026 | Updated: 12:31, 25 June 2026 Almost one in four Europeans support far-right parties, new research shows, with the figure doubling in the last decade.  According to a study by the PopuList Project - led by researchers at the University of Amsterdam - the number of Europeans who voted for a far-right party in their countries' most recent national elections had risen to more than 23 per cent.  This is a 10 per cent jump from 10 years before, and around 5 per cent in 1995.  The rise in far-right support was particularly present between 2023 and 2025, according to the research.  Europe's far right has indeed scored some recent successes.  France's National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen, gained ground in municipal elections earlier this year, while Alternative for Germany (AfD) is performing increasingly well in polls.  The populist leader of the Czech Republic, Orbán ally Andrej Babis, returned as prime minister last year.  Austria's far-right Freedom Party advanced from 16 per cent to 29 per cent in elections in 2024, while Chega in Portugal rose from 7 per cent to 18 per cent.   Almost one in four Europeans support far-right parties, new research shows. Pictured: A demonstrator performs a fascist salute as others chant and wave Italian flags during a 'remigration' march in Rome, Italy, June 13, 2026 File image: French far-right leader Marine Le Pen waves to the crowd, during a rally in support of her Far-right populist parties are currently part of ruling coalitions in Croatia, Czechia, Italy and Finland.  They also support a right-wing minority government in Sweden and have led in polls in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and the UK, the analysis showed.  However, these parties have also suffered defeats in some European nations.  In the Netherlands, Geert Wilders' PVV lost almost a third of its seats and finished second last year, and in Hungary, Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party conceded to a centre-right opponent in April. According to the experts working on the PopuList survey, several factors lie behind the growing trend.  Speaking to The Guardian, Matthijs Rooduijn, a political scientist at the University of Amsterdam, said research suggested voter attitudes towards core far-right themes, such as immigration, had not changed significantly over time, but had become far more significant in the decisions people made about which party to vote for. He also said that far-right parties had become more mainstream, adding that far-right parties have managed to create a 'heroes versus villains' narrative. 'The bigger and more successful they get, the more 'normal' they become,' Rooduijn said.  'That's helped by the media, and by mainstream parties embracing their ideas.'  He added that far-right parties know 'how to frame their message, which ultimately is always about an in-group and an out-group – the nation versus immigrants, judges, 'woke elites', whoever.' 'That produced a "heroes versus villains "narrative, tied to an idealised past in which everything was better,' he added 'And they've got way better at articulating that, at stirring emotions: anger, contempt, also pride and hope. They've professionalised.' The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.