Defending Democracy in the European Parliament

The rise of the far right in the European Parliament and the institutional pushback it provoked

In recent years, far-right political parties have grown in influence not only in the domestic politics of countries such as Hungary, Brazil, and the United States, but also in international institutions ranging from the United Nations Human Rights Council to the European Union. Have these international platforms contributed to the rise of the far right in liberal democracies?

In Defending Democracy in the European Parliament, Christin Tonne examines the far right's role in the European Parliament and the institution's response. Tonne, a former aide to a member of the European Parliament, provides a rare insider's view of the far right's ascent in that organisation. Drawing on three years of ethnographic research—observations and interactions in corridors, meetings, and plenary sessions—she traces how the far right seamlessly integrated into EU politics, often with the support of mainstream political parties.

Tonne argues that many of Europe's far-right parties, including the French National Rally and Alternative for Germany, incubated at the EU level, using the European Parliament as a laboratory for experimentation with far-right ideas and as a springboard for a new, more self-assured and ambitious generation of far-right leaders. Exploring the responses of the Parliament's traditional political factions, she traces the emergence of a quiet yet persistent opposition movement as the institution tries to defend itself and its mission. Tonne's account raises important questions about the ongoing normalisation of far-right politics at the EU level and beyond.