Elections for the European Parliament in 27 countries ended on Sunday, with early projections giving far-right parties a strong showing, a result that, if confirmed, would amount to a powerful indicator of voter dissatisfaction and a harsh rebuke. for the political mainstream.
The vote indicated that the prevailing winds had turned decidedly cold for the European political establishment. The results are likely to make it difficult for the European Parliament to form majorities to pass laws and would make negotiations on divisive issues even more difficult. More broadly, they stressed that the momentum of far-right forces that have been broadening their challenge to centrists over the past decade had not yet peaked.
The projected outcome did not bode well for Europe’s centrist leaders and their parties, including France and Germany, the continent’s largest powers that are seen as the engine of Europe’s experiment in uniting national sovereignty.
The results were especially crushing for President Emmanuel Macron of France, who hosted President Biden at a state dinner in Paris on Saturday night. Macron’s Renaissance party was on the verge of wiping out about half the support of Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party, which was on track to secure more than 30 percent of the vote, according to projections based on preliminary counts from votes.
The result may now leave Le Pen, whom Macron has derided as a threat to the values of the French Republic, in her strongest position yet to challenge the French mainstream in the presidential election in three years’ time, when Macron , who has a limited term, must step aside.
The far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD), officially classified as a “suspicious” extremist group by the German authorities, was also forceful.
Projections gave the party about 16 percent of the vote. The projected result placed the AfD behind the conservative Christian Democratic Union, but ahead of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats, making it the country’s second-largest party.
Right-wing parties now govern alone or as part of coalitions in seven of the 27 European Union countries. They have won across the continent as voters have become more focused on nationalism and identity, often linked to migration and some of the same culture war policies related to gender and LGBTQ issues that have gained traction in the United States. Joined.
The strong performance by the far right is likely to resonate even in the United States, where it can be expected to embolden like-minded political forces loyal to former President Donald J. Trump as he seeks to return to office in the Nov. 5 general election.
Other factors contributing to the rise of the right have been lingering anger over Covid-era policies and the inflation that grew in the wake of the pandemic and as a consequence of the war in Ukraine, which pushed Europe to move away from Russian energy. cheap.
Part of the far right in the European Parliament is pro-Russia and wants to push for a quick peace deal with Ukraine on Russia’s terms. Their voices could influence what has so far been strong EU support for kyiv in the form of billions in funding for weapons and reconstruction, as well as a path to EU membership.
European Union leaders have already softened environmental policies and reformed the bloc’s immigration policies to address the concerns of traditional conservative and far-right voters, but the electoral success of more radical right-wing parties could lead to even more changes. .
New, firmer numbers based on actual votes counted were expected to be released later Sunday night.
Aurelien Breeden contributed reporting from Paris.