This week’s local elections are the latest reminder that when social democrats move rightwards, they’re making a mistake
-
Cas Mudde is the author of The Far Right Today
After more than 100 years, Copenhagen no longer has a Social Democrat mayor. Sisse Marie Welling, the new lord mayor, represents neither the mainstream right nor the far right but the Green Left (Socialistisk Folkeparti, known as SF). This should be a major wake-up call for centre-left parties across Europe. After more than a decade taking the wrong lessons from Denmark, it is finally time to learn the right lesson: copying the far right not only fails to turn on far-right voters, it also turns off progressive voters.
The 21st century has so far seen two simultaneous electoral developments in western Europe: the decline of social-democratic parties and the rise of far-right parties. This has created the powerful narrative that social democrats are losing votes to the far right, in particular because of their (alleged) “pro-immigration” positions. And although research shows that their voters mainly moved to centre-right and green parties, social-democratic parties have been chasing this mythical “left behind” voter ever since.
Cas Mudde is the Stanley Wade Shelton UGAF professor of international affairs at the University of Georgia, and author of The Far Right Today
