Party Competition and the Far Right: Strategies, Influence, and Normalization

Abstract

This panel examines how far-right parties shape political competition, policy agendas, and democratic discourse across European contexts. Moving beyond a narrow focus on electoral success, the papers explore the multiple channels through which far-right actors exert influence. Drawing on diverse methods including large-scale surveys, quantitative text analysis, agenda-setting models, process tracing, and conceptual reconstruction, the contributions highlight the often unintended and conditional nature of far-right influence. Comparing several different cases, the panel advances our understanding of how far-right ideas become normalized, contested, or embedded within democratic institutions and its implications for party competition and democratic resilience.

Title	Details
Rethinking Far-Right Influence: How Populist Radical Right-Wing Narratives Alter Mainstream Party Policy Agendas	View Paper Details
Unintended Normalization: Engaging with the Far Right and Discursive Dilemmas in German State Parliaments	View Paper Details
When the Taboo Weakens: Local Collaboration with Far-Right Parties	View Paper Details
The Centre and the Far Right in France: Macron and His Party’s Strategy Towards the National Rally and the Mainstreaming the Far Right	View Paper Details
From Votes to Agendas: How Radical Right Parties Shape Political Discourse and Legislative Output in Europe	View Paper Details