On September 13, British activist Tommy Robinson organized a march called “Unite the Kingdom.” It attracted about 110,000 people who listened to the French essayist and politician Eric Zemmour warn that “the great replacement of our European people by people coming from the south and of Muslim culture” was taking place. They heard tech entrepreneur Elon Musk declare via video link that it was time to dissolve the current British government and “either fight back or you die.”
Musk’s apocalyptic comments created something of a furor in Great Britain. No 10 Downing Street offered an official condemnation: “The last thing the British people want is this sort of dangerous and inflammatory language.”
But Business Secretary Peter Kyle observed to the BBC that such protests represent “klaxon calls” that mainstream politicians ignore at their peril. “A lot of it,” Kyle said, “goes back to its roots in the financial crisis and the impact that had on communities around the country, and we haven’t been able to bring our communities back together again since.” This sense of fraying communities has been exacerbated by mounting apprehensions about immigration, an issue exploited by both Robinson and Nigel Farage, the head of the new Reform UK party.
The conundrum Farage faces is of being outflanked on the right by the likes of Robinson. This past January Musk lashed into Farage, asserting that “The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes.” Musk was objecting to Farage distancing himself from Robinson as “not what we need.”
The difference between these two populist agitators is not difficult to discern. Farage wants to be the standard bearer of populism with a human face. When queried about Musk’s comments at the rally held by Robinson, Farage remarked, “Elon and I have a relationship, wouldn’t say a very good one. He’s generally rather rude about me… You know, it would be nice to get some definition of what “fight” meant in that context.”
So far, as the sight of immigrants arriving in inflatable boats across the English Channel stirs up emotions, Farage has had a winning message. While Labour’s poll numbers have plummeted, those of Farage’s Reform party indicate that it is currently Britain’s most popular political party. Meanwhile, the Tory party is quaking at the prospect of its longtime voters being cannibalized by Farage and his followers. On September 15, Tory member of parliament and shadow minister Danny Kruger defected on Monday to the Reform party, announcing that “the Conservatives are over.”
Are they? Is a populist revolt about to occur not only in Great Britain but also Europe? This is the very query that JST editor Robert Silverman recently posed to me on AbrahamTV as we discussed the direction of nationalism and Europe. My answer was somewhat provisional, noting that Hungary will go to the polls in April and Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is presiding over a faltering economy, faces his toughest challenge to date in securing a new term.
But a fresh state election in Germany indicates the winds of change may indeed sweep through Europe itself. Much to the consternation of the political establishment, the far-right Alternative Party for Germany seems to be steadily expanding its voter base in the western areas of Germany. Until now, its popularity had mainly resided in the former communist Eastern Germany, where disaffection with the West predominated. But the party’s attempts to woo working-class voters appear to be paying handsome dividends in the West as well.
North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous region in Germany and the heart of the industrial Ruhr region, is considered a bellwether state. It’s also the home state of Christian Democratic chancellor Friedrich Merz. In state-wide elections on September 14, the Christian Democrats won 35 percent of the vote, while their coalition partner, the Social Democrats, attained 22.5 percent.
But the Alternative party tripled its vote, reaching 16.5 percent, a testament to the difficulties that the Social Democrats face in retaining their old base of industrial voters. They are now flocking to the right, which espouses anti-immigration stands and a conciliatory posture towards Russia.
“This is a great success for us,” AfD spokesman Tino Chrupalla stated on X. “We are a people’s party and we all bear a great responsibility for Germany.” The Alternative party is also pressuring the policies of the mainstream right. Merz has moved decisively to address the immigration issue, including engaging in talks in Doha and Kabul with the Taliban to carry out deportations from Germany to Afghanistan.
For now, the German establishment has retained its footing. But the steady march of the Alternative Party suggests that it may not be possible to exclude it from national government the next time around, let alone ban it as some in Germany are urging.
For Germany, Great Britain and other European countries, the nationalist right appears to be a permanent feature of the political landscape rather than a passing phenomenon.
