Far-right populists lead polls in Germany, France and Britain for the first time

A poll found the AfD were the most popular among German voters.

For months, Reform UK and the National Rally have led the polls in the UK and France respectively. But after a poll earlier this month showed Alternative for Germany (AfD) is the most popular party amongst German voters, it meant that far-right parties led the way in Europe’s three biggest economies for the first time in modern history.

The poll from German broadcaster RTL put the AfD at 26%, ahead of the ruling Christian Democrats at 24%.

It’s a scenario that would have been almost unfathomable 10 years ago, when the European far-right was a largely fringe movement characterised by being anti-immigration and anti-Islam – which really, it still is.

But unrest and dissatisfaction with the political status quo and institutions combined with continuing economic issues such as inflation has seen support for the far-right surge in recent years. Europe is now faced with a very real world where populist right-wing parties could be in charge of its three most powerful nations.

Far-right parties have been elected in recent years in nations such as Italy and Hungary, but if one of Germany, France or Britain were to have a far-right party in power it would mark one of the most significant political shifts in European history.

Speaking to NBC, Nic Cheeseman, professor of democracy and international development at the University of Birmingham, said the poll in Germany is a “sign of the power of populism, disinformation and the failure of established parties to understand what is happening.”

There is still a long way to go before the far-right will get a shot at winning in Germany, France or Britain. France’s presidential election is in 2027, whilst Germany and Britain won’t hold general elections until 2029.

All of the far-right parties are polling in the 20s and 30s percentage-wise. Whilst this puts them top of the polls, it is extremely unlikely this level of support would be enough to govern a majority.

And of course, it was only last year that the left came out on top in France’s legislative elections, a year which also saw Labour win a landslide in Britain.