Why Right Wing Parties Are Rising Globally?
Right wing parties are not just winning the odd election. From Europe to Latin America, they are gaining seats in parliaments, entering coalitions, and in some cases running governments outright. In the European Parliament, parties classified as far right now hold roughly 27 percent of seats, their highest share ever. In Argentina, a self-styled libertarian radical won the presidency and his movement has since consolidated gains in midterm elections.
This shift matters because it is already reshaping policy on immigration, climate, trade, and relations with major powers. It also tests how resilient democratic systems are when parties that question elements of liberal democracy become key players.
The central tension is simple but uncomfortable. Many voters feel the status quo has failed them; right wing parties promise to smash it. The question is whether those promises fix the underlying problems or deepen them.
This piece looks at the main forces behind the rise of right wing parties globally: economic shocks, migration and identity, collapsing trust in institutions, and the new information ecosystem. It also examines how this trend is playing out in policy, and what to watch next.
The story turns on whether mainstream politics can rebuild trust and security faster than right wing movements can turn anger into power.
Key Points
Support for right wing parties has risen across Europe, the Americas, and beyond, with stronger showings in national and European elections and growing influence inside key institutions.
Economic shocks from globalization, trade competition, and the cost-of-living crisis have pushed disillusioned voters toward parties promising protection from foreign goods, migrants, and supranational rules.
Large refugee and migration flows, combined with cultural anxieties about identity and social change, have made immigration a central driver of right wing populist support.
Trust in governments and institutions is low in many democracies, creating fertile ground for movements that frame politics as a struggle between “the people” and a corrupt or distant “elite”.
The return of a nationalist U.S. president and victories by hard-line leaders in countries such as Argentina have encouraged like-minded parties elsewhere, even as internal divisions and governing constraints limit how far they can go.
The rise of right wing parties is already shifting policy on climate, migration, and European integration, but it is not a straight line; in some places voters have mobilized to block hard-right candidates from top posts.
Background
The rise of right wing parties is not a single story but a cluster of overlapping trends. In Europe, parties that combine nationalism, social conservatism, and hostility to immigration have moved from the fringes toward the center of power over the past decade. By 2024, such parties were in government, or supporting governments, in several European states, and their ideas increasingly shaped debates at the European Union level.
The 2024 European Parliament elections marked a symbolic high-water mark. Far right groups won around 27 percent of seats, enough to influence coalitions on migration, climate rules, and agricultural policy, even though centrist groups still held a majority.
Outside Europe, right wing populism has reshaped politics in the United States, Brazil, India, and the Philippines over the past decade. In Argentina, Javier Milei’s 2023 presidential victory and later legislative gains extended this trend into Latin America’s second-largest economy.
Researchers often distinguish between traditional conservative parties and more radical formations. The latter tend to mix hard lines on immigration and identity with anti-establishment rhetoric and skepticism toward global institutions.
Underneath the labels, three big forces keep appearing: economic insecurity, cultural and demographic change, and collapsing trust in mainstream institutions.
Analysis
Political and Geopolitical Dimensions
Politically, the rise of right wing parties is rooted in a sense of betrayal. Many voters feel that center-left and center-right parties converged on similar economic and social policies, leaving large parts of the population without a clear voice.
Right wing parties have stepped into that gap with a simple narrative: a “corrupt elite”, they argue, sold out national interests to global markets, open borders, and distant bureaucrats. At the same time, they present themselves as defenders of national sovereignty, traditional values, and “ordinary people”.
Migration is a central flashpoint. Parties from Italy to the Netherlands have built support on pledges to tighten borders, speed up deportations, and roll back asylum rights. In several countries, they have pushed mainstream rivals to harden their own migration policies to compete.
Geopolitically, shifts in the United States and Europe reinforce each other. Europe’s radical right parties have drawn confidence from the return of a nationalist U.S. president, seeing it as proof that a hard line on trade, alliances, and immigration can win and hold power. Mainstream European leaders, meanwhile, worry that a more fragmented, nationalist EU will be less able to act together on Russia, China, and regional crises.
In some countries, the strength of these movements has triggered institutional pushback, including debates over whether certain parties pose a threat to constitutional order.
Economic and Market Impact
Economic research offers one of the clearest links between real-world shocks and rising support for right wing parties. Regions hit hardest by import competition from low-wage countries have shown stronger swings toward right wing populists, especially when combined with refugee inflows.
When factories close or wages stagnate, voters don’t just lose income; they lose status and control. Right wing parties promise to restore both by blaming outsiders—foreign competitors, migrants, supranational institutions—and by pledging to “take back” control over borders, trade, and regulation.
The cost-of-living shock after the pandemic and energy crisis has sharpened these dynamics. High food and energy prices, rising rents, and fears about job security have fueled anger at governments seen as slow or indifferent.
Markets have responded unevenly. Investors often worry about the unpredictability of radical parties, but some welcome promises of lighter regulation, lower taxes, or a slower pace of climate transition.
Social and Cultural Fallout
Economics alone does not explain the rise of right wing parties. Cultural and demographic anxieties are just as important.
Migration has increased the visibility of ethnic, religious, and linguistic diversity, especially in cities. While many voters accept or welcome this, others feel unsettled by rapid changes in local customs, language, or social norms. Political research suggests that the impact of immigration is shaped less by numbers and more by its visibility and how politicized it becomes.
Right wing parties amplify these anxieties. They point to real or perceived problems—crime, pressure on public services, tensions over religion or gender roles—and frame them as evidence that multicultural societies are fraying. They often blur distinctions between legal and irregular migration, or between refugees and long-settled minorities.
Social media accelerates this dynamic. Emotional content spreads fastest, and viral clips—even of rare incidents—can create a sense of constant crisis. Parties that promise simple, sweeping action thrive in such an atmosphere.
Technological and Security Implications
Technology has changed both how right wing parties campaign and what they campaign on.
Digitally, these parties often excel at targeted ads, short-form video, and online communities. These channels allow them to bypass traditional media, test messages quickly, and spread narratives at speed.
In security debates, right wing parties push for stronger borders, tougher policing, and more skeptical stances toward international agreements. At the EU level, their influence has contributed to stricter asylum rules and more restrictive migration deals with neighboring countries.
Climate and technology policy have also shifted. Stronger right wing blocs have made ambitious climate legislation harder to pass, arguing that green rules burden farmers, drivers, and industrial workers.
What Most Coverage Misses
One of the most important but under-discussed factors is trust. Across many democracies, fewer than half of people say they trust their national government to do what is right. Many support democracy as a system but have little faith in how it works.
Low trust changes everything. When trust collapses, policy mistakes look like conspiracies, compromises look like betrayals, and scandals confirm the belief that “they’re all the same”. Anti-establishment parties thrive in this environment.
Another overlooked point is that the right wing surge is not unstoppable. In several places, right wing parties have hit ceilings or faced backlash—through mass protests, tactical alliances among rivals, or legal challenges.
Political systems are in flux. What happens next depends on how mainstream parties, institutions, and voters respond.
Why This Matters
The rise of right wing parties affects societies unevenly.
Migrants, refugees, and minorities often feel the impact first through tougher border controls, stricter asylum processes, and sharper public rhetoric. Businesses exposed to global markets and climate rules face uncertainty as trade agreements, tariffs, and environmental standards come under pressure.
In the short term, voters can expect sharper divides over migration, climate policy, and foreign relations. At the EU level, coalition talks will become more complex, and negotiations over climate targets and farm subsidies will be harder to settle with stronger right wing blocs in both the Parliament and Council.
In the long term, constitutional norms are at stake. If parties skeptical of liberal democracy gain and hold power, they could reshape courts, media rules, and electoral systems in ways that are difficult to reverse.
Events to watch include national elections in major EU states, debates over restricting extremist parties, and large summits where migration and climate agreements will test whether coalitions can hold together.
World Impact
A small manufacturer in northern Italy, squeezed by cheaper imports and rising energy bills, sees a right wing party promise tariffs, subsidies, and a halt to new climate rules. For him, the choice feels existential: protect his industry or lose his town’s last major employer.
A nurse in a Paris suburb faces overcrowded housing, long hospital waits, and a stream of stories linking crime to young men from migrant backgrounds. A party offering tougher policing and stricter migration rules may sound, to her, like the only group taking those problems seriously.
A factory worker in eastern Germany watches his community shrink as young people leave for bigger cities. With little trust in mainstream parties, a radical movement promising to defend local identity and limit EU influence feels like a direct response to being left behind.
A Syrian shop owner in a northern European city hears politicians talk about mass deportations. Business is good, but he fears for his residency and his children’s future. For him, the rise of right wing parties means daily anxiety over paperwork and belonging.
Road Ahead
The global rise of right wing parties reflects economic hardship, rapid cultural change, and deep frustration with how democracies function. These parties have been quick to channel anger at elites, globalization, and migration into political momentum.
The key question is whether this momentum strengthens or weakens democratic systems. One path sees mainstream parties addressing real grievances—on wages, housing, and security—while defending courts, media independence, and minority rights. The other sees permanent crisis politics, where rules bend to satisfy a frustrated majority.
Signals to watch include whether trust in institutions stabilizes, how right wing parties perform when governing, and whether voters punish them for broken promises or double down when change is slow. These clues will show whether the current surge is a passing wave or the new normal.
