Ahead of the European election, striking data shows where Gen Z and millennials’ allegiances lie.
Far-right parties are surging across Europe — and young voters are buying in.
Many parties with anti-immigrant agendas are even seeing support from first-time young voters in the upcoming June 6-9 European Parliament election.
In Belgium, France, Portugal, Germany and Finland, younger voters are backing anti-immigration and anti-establishment parties in numbers equal to and even exceeding older voters, analyses of recent elections and research of young people’s political preferences suggest.
In the Netherlands, Geert Wilders’ anti-immigration far-right Freedom Party won the 2023 election on a campaign that tied affordable housing to restrictions on immigration — a focus that struck a chord with young voters. In Portugal, too, the far-right party Chega, which means “enough” in Portuguese, drew on young people’s frustration with the housing crisis, among other quality-of-life concerns.
The analysis also points to a split: While young women often reported support for the Greens and other left-leaning parties, anti-migration parties did particularly well among young men. (Though there are some exceptions. See France, below, for example.)
As a white dude I don’t feel like this at all. There are plenty of outspoken progressive men all over popular media, and at every level of society. It only feels this way because progressive messaging asks men to do a lot more soul searching, while conservative messaging is effectively information warfare designed to validate low effort biases and reinforce historical power structures.
Most of the progressive role models I see for straight white men focus on uplifting minorities and the disenfranchised. When it’s not done to white knight or virtue signal, that’s awesome. But it misses a crucial part of what a role model should be. Someone who understands your struggles and promotes self love and empathy. And encourages you to stick up for yourself. Secure your mask before helping others.
But when these men talk about their struggles they’re branded as incels. If they say they’re proud of their heritage they’re branded as racist. If they try and do something about injustices they face they’re branded conservatives.
I don’t understand why you believe these messages about securing your own mask need to come from white men. What you are describing are universal issues of mental health and self esteem which have nothing to do with race or gender.
The fact that you immediately go to white knights and virtue signalling says a lot. Building an inclusive society isn’t a matter of charity, it makes us all stronger. When you exclude people, they will not help you. This is so fucking simple, children understand it.
progressive messaging sucks, that’s why. it says ‘go to therapy and be content with what little you have’
conservative messaging says ‘do this shit and you’ll get money and women’
“be content with what little you have” is conservative messaging, not progressive.
Name 3