New research paper: Is far-right ecologism going mainstream? A comparison of right-wing groups in the European Parliament
Is far-right ecologism spilling over into mainstream European climate politics? A new research paper by Balša Lubarda (Pompeu Fabra University) and Aron Buzogány (BOKU University) investigates the "far-right mainstreaming" thesis within the European Parliament.
By analyzing 403 roll-call votes and 1,471 parliamentary speeches across four legislative terms (2009–2025), the paper examines whether the lines dividing center-right and far-right green ideologies are blurring in an arena marked by climate emergency declarations and Green Deal pushback.
The analysis reveals a pattern of "selective mainstreaming". Rather than an outright right-wing alliance, the paper finds a noticeable horizontal shifting of far-right environmental positioning into the ECR group, particularly from the mid-2010s onward and spiking significantly in the post-pandemic era. Meanwhile, the center-right EPP remains relatively distant from the far-right cluster, constrained by its pivotal role in the Grand Coalition. While right-wing factions frequently unite on common concepts like "pro-people protectionism", subsidiarity and protecting market competitiveness from strict regulations, these shared talking points are overshadowed by deeper ideological, systemic and contextual differences that continue to fragment the right-wing environmental spectrum.
