The Profiteers of Fear? Right-wing populism and the COVID-19 Crisis

The Finnish country report, written by Niko Hatakka, analyses how the Finnish far right has reacted to the government’s handling of COVID-19 and the economic consequences of the virus during its first wave. It explains, how the populist radical right Finns Party has remained reasonably reserved in its criticism, and how the party has attempted to avoid affiliation with the Finnish online far right. Instead of uniting Finnish far right actors, COVID-19 has reinvigorated coalition building potential especially between the centre right and the populist radical right.

About the author

Dr Niko Hatakka is a Research Fellow at the Department of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Birmingham and a Senior Researcher at the Centre for Parliamentary Studies at the University of Turku.

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The Profiteers of Fear? Finland (English)

Die Profiteure der Angst? Finnland (German)

The Swedish country report, written by Ann-Cathrine Jungar, explains that Sweden chose voluntary measures rather than mandatory “lockdown” restrictions to combat Covid-19. By November 2020 there had been more than 6,000 deaths. In the early phase of the pandemic there was an informal truce between the government and the opposition. Political friction grew with the increased number of deaths. The right-wing populist party the Sweden Democrats (SD) have voiced strong criticism of the Public Health Agency, the government and the nursing homes, particularly for not protecting the elderly. The public support for the SD decreased initially, but is now back to pre-pandemic levels.

About the author

Ann-Cathrin Jungar is an associate professor in political science at the Department of Social Sciences at Södertörn University in Stockholm. She has a PhD from the Department of Government at Uppsala University.

Publications for download:

The Profiteers of Fear? Sweden (English)

Die Profiteure der Angst? Schweden (German)

In many countries the Covid-19 crisis had initially led to increased trust in government. The restrictions to personal freedoms, curfews, restrictions on social contacts, the closure of large segments of the economy as well as the widening of executive powers in many countries was largely accepted and supported by the public. However, frustration and distrust of government have been increasing the longer the restrictions have been in place. Some countries witnessed large demonstrations against the counter measures. Moreover, the wide dissemination of fake news and conspiracy theories are influencing the public debate on how to handle the pandemic. All over Europe, right-wing populist parties and movements have tried to derive political benefit from this situation of growing resentment but also fear. Axel Salheiser and Christoph Richter take a preliminary stock of the situation in Germany.

About the authors

Axel Salheiser and Christoph Richter are researchers at the Institute for Democracy and Civil Society in Jena (Institut für Demokratie und Zivil-gesellschaft).

Publications for download:

The Profiteers of Fear? Germany (English)

Die Profiteure der Angst? Deutschland (German)

In many countries the Covid-19 crisis had initially led to increased trust in government. The restrictions to personal freedoms, curfews, restrictions on social contacts, the closure of large segments of the economy as well as the widening of executive powers in many countries was largely accepted and supported by the public. However, frustration and distrust of government have been increasing the longer the restrictions have been in place. Some countries witnessed large demonstrations against the counter measures. Moreover, the wide dissemination of fake news and conspiracy theories are influencing the public debate on how to handle the pandemic. All over Europe, right-wing populist parties and movements have tried to derive political benefit from this situation of growing resentment but also fear. Jean-Yves Camus takes a preliminary stock of the reactions of the Rassemblement National to the Covid crisis in France.

About the author

Jean-Yves Camus is a political analyst and president of the Observatoire des radicalités politiques (“Observatory of political radicalism”) at the think tank Fondation Jean-Jaurès.

The Profiteers of Fear? France (English)

Die Profiteure der Angst? Frankreich (German)

The extreme right wing of the Lega and Fratelli d’Italia, led by Matteo Salvini and Giorgia Meloni, today has the quasi-monopoly of the opposition. In the months of the outbreak and management of the pandemic, the management of the opposition role was ambiguous and confused: however, an attitude of noncooperation prevailed. The style and rhetoric of the two leaders often evoked populist frames and themes, particularly immigration and Europe, naturally suited for the pandemic situation, although Meloni tried to show a less extreme profile. The growing consensus of her party and the decreasing consensus of Salvini’s party leave open the question of the impact of the pandemic on the consensus of populist parties. What seems certain is that their traditional themes have lost strength.

About the author

Sofia Ventura is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Bologna where she holds courses in Comparative Politics, Leadership and Political Communication, Leadership, médias et opinion publique. Since 2010 she has held courses and modules at the School of Government of Luiss University in Rome. Editorialist and commentator for the weekly magazine L’Espresso, she writes for the online publications Linkiesta and Huffington Post. Her latest book: I leader e le loro storie. Narrazione, comunicazione politica e crisi della democrazia (»The leaders and their stories. Narration, political communication and the crisis of democracy«), Il Mulino, 2019.

The Profiteers of Fear? Italy (English)

Die Profiteure der Angst? Italien (German)