By The Smartencyclopedia Staff Writer with Agencies
Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz have suffered significant setbacks in the latest European Parliament elections, as exit polls reveal a dramatic shift in voter sentiment towards right-wing and nationalist parties across Europe.
In France, President Macron faced a resounding defeat with Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party emerging victorious. According to the first exit polls, the National Rally secured around 32 percent of the votes, marking a 10-point increase since the 2019 elections and positioning them 17 points ahead of Macron’s party. This outcome solidifies Le Pen’s status as a strong contender for France’s 2027 presidential election.
National Rally president Jordan Bardella stated, “Emmanuel Macron is a weakened president, already deprived of an absolute majority in the French parliament and now restricted in his means of action within the European Parliament. The President of the Republic must choose to follow the spirit of the institutions, solemnly take note of this new political situation, return to the French people and organize new legislative elections.”
French Socialist MEP Raphaël Glucksmann highlighted the broader implications of these results, noting, “The far right in France today represents 40 percent of the vote. Across Europe, we are witnessing a wave that is profoundly shaking our democracies.”
In Germany, the hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) made significant gains, securing second place behind the opposition conservatives with 16.5 percent of the vote, an increase from 11 percent in 2019. This information comes from an exit poll conducted by public broadcaster ARD. The AfD’s co-leader Alice Weidel commented, “We’ve done well because people have become more anti-European.”
Notably, the AfD saw increased support among younger voters, rising 12 percentage points to 17 percent among those aged 16-24, tying with the Conservatives as the most popular party in that age group and in the former Communist East. Conversely, Germany’s Greens experienced a substantial decline, falling 8.6 percentage points to 11.9 percent, attributed to voter dissatisfaction with the costs associated with CO2 reduction policies.
The wave of right-wing victories was not confined to France and Germany. In the Netherlands, nationalist Geert Wilders’ anti-immigration party is poised to secure seven of the 29 Dutch seats in the EU assembly, nearly matching the combined seats of a Socialist Democrat-Greens alliance.
Austria also witnessed a rightward shift, with the hard-right Freedom Party likely to win, based on polling data collected over the past week and published as voting concluded on Sunday evening.
In Greece, exit polls indicated that the ruling New Democracy party garnered between 28 and 32 percent of the vote. The hard-right, pro-Russian party Greek Solution achieved 7.6 to 10 percent, while the ultra-conservative Niki recorded between 2.9 and 4.9 percent.
Spain’s exit polls showed Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) in a tight race with the conservative People’s Party (PP), reflecting the broader trend of rising right-wing influence.
Denmark’s exit polls, conducted by national broadcaster DR, revealed that the Socialist People’s Party (Green Left) is expected to secure the largest share of votes, at 18.4 percent, translating to three out of the 15 Danish seats in the European Parliament.
These election results underscore a growing discontent with pro-European Union policies and a surge in support for nationalist and right-wing parties across the continent. The significant shifts in voter preferences signal a potential reconfiguration of the European political landscape, with far-reaching implications for the future of the EU.