RIGHT-WING NATIONALIST PARTIES

European Conservatives and Reformists ECR GROUP

1. Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) (Romania)
2. Alliance Germany (Germany)
3. Brothers of Italy (Italy)
4. Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic)
5. Denmark Democrats Party (Denmark)
6. Dutch Reformed Party (Netherlands)
7. Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania-Christian Families Alliance (Lithuania)
8. Finns Party (Finland)
9. Folklistan (Sweden)
10. Freedom and Solidarity
11. French Conservative Party (Marion Maréchal, Guillaume Peltier, Laurence Trochu, Nicolas Bay) (France)
12. Greek Solution (Greece)
13. IMRO-Bulgarian National Movement (Bulgaria)
14. Ja21 (Netherlands)
15. Law and Justice Party (Poland) Patriots for Europe ?
16. Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union party (Lithuania)
17. More Direct Democracy/MDD (Netherlands)
18. National Alliance “All for Latvia”, for Fatherland and Freedom(LNNK) (Latvia)
19. New Flemish Alliance (Flanders)
20. Sweden Democrats (Sweden)
21. The Romanian National Conservative Party (PNCR) (Romania)
22. There is Such a People (ITN)
23. United Poland (Poland)
24. Vox (Spain)
25. ECR Independent Group

Identity and Democracy Group

1. Conservative People’s Party of Estonia (Estonia) Patriots for Europe?
2. Danish People’s Party (Denmark) Patriots for Europe?
3. FPO (Austria) Signed up to Patriots for Europe
4. Freedom and Direct Democracy (Czech Republic)
5. Lega (Italy) Patriots for Europe ?
6. RN (France)
7. Vlaams Belang (Flanders) Patriots for Europe?

Patriots for Europe (in the making)

On Sunday, 30 June, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, along with Herbert Kickl, President of the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ), and former Czech Prime Minister and ANO party President Andrej Babiš, announced the creation of a new European Parliament political group called Patriots for Europe. According to Orbán, the newly formed alliance will soon become the largest faction of the European right. One of the group’s objectives is to reform the European Parliament, significantly reduce its size, protect national sovereignty, and prevent the creation of a European superstate.

Each of the three founding members won their country’s European elections at the beginning of June. With 26.14 per cent of the vote, ANO will have 7 MEPs in the new European Parliament, while the FPÖ will strengthen the sovereigntist camp with 6 MEPs, having secured 25.36 per cent of the vote. Fidesz came first with 44.82 per cent of the vote and will be able to send 11 MEPs to the soon-to-be-constituted Parliament. This already exceeds the threshold of 23 MEPs needed to form a political group but does not yet meet another requirement: that MEPs must come from at least seven EU member states. The unofficial deadline for forming political groups is 4 July, giving the three leaders until then to gather members for the new political family.

There is no shortage of potential allies. Firstly, there is the Law and Justice Party (PiS) of former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who is currently a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), founded by Giorgia Meloni. However, this could easily change.  PiS has a 50/50 chance of leaving the ECR. Patriots for Europe would be a perfect choice for PiS: Viktor Orbán is a long-time ally of Morawiecki, and a Central European grouping could increase the weight of the region’s states in European decision-making.

PiS is sending 20 MEPs to the new Parliament, and their potential accession would bring the new alliance to 44 MEPs, overtaking the Left’s faction. However, the departure of PiS would be a significant blow to the ECR, currently the third-largest political group in the EP.

The candidates include Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s Smer-SD party, whose MEPs were expelled from the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) in October 2023 after Fico won the elections. Joining the alliance would be ideologically and geographically ideal for Smer, which also takes a pro-peace stance on the war in Ukraine and holds a similar position on migration to the Patriots for Europe. However, Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, leader of the Hlas party, which is allied with Smer, has indicated that Fico would like to rejoin the S&D. Smer came second in the EP elections and is sending 5 MEPs to the European Parliament.

Alternative for Germany (AfD), which was recently expelled from ID, also sees Patriots for Europe as a new opportunity but they are trying to establish their own group called The Sovereignists (see below). Another potential member of Patriots for Europe is the Italian League party, led by Matteo Salvini. Salvini immediately congratulated the formation of the alliance. Salvini has previously held several talks with Viktor Orbán to form a political group of European right-wing forces, so it is not at all out of the question that we could soon see the two politicians and their parties in an alliance. League is sending 8 MEPs to the European Parliament.

According to press reports, Babiš also consulted with Geert Wilders, leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom (PVV), which is also a member of ID and won 6 seats in the EP elections.

On Monday, the Portuguese Chega (Enough!) party announced its intention to join the Patriots for Europe coalition, with the southern newcomers sending 2 MEPs to the European Parliament. Other potential candidates include the Spanish right-wing party Vox, also closely allied with Viktor Orbán, which has 6 MEPs; the Belgian EP election winner Vlaams Belang, with 3 MEPs; the Danish People’s Party, with 1 MEP; and the Conservative People’s Party of Estonia, also with 1 MEP.

The addition of the above-mentioned parties would bring the number of seats held by Patriots for Europe to around 100, making it the third-largest political group in the European Parliamentthus knocking Giorgia Meloni’s ECR out of their current position.

However, there are many uncertainties, as the listed parties, despite having similar ideological positions on issues such as migration and the future of Europe, are very divergent on foreign policy, especially regarding the war in Ukraine. If they can overcome these differences, or at least set them aside, they may indeed be able to counter the will of the liberal mainstream in the European Parliament and exert significant influence on European decision-making over the next five years.

The Sovereignists (in the making)

1. AfD (Germany)
2. NIKH (Greece)
3. Our Homeland Movement (Hungary)
4. Polish Konfederacjia or Ruch Narodowy (Poland)
5. Reconquête (France)
6. Republic Movement (Slovakia)
7. SOS Romania (Romania)
8. The Party is Over (Spain)
9. Vazrazhdane (Bulgaria)