Mar 6, 2018

Populist parties in Europe ensure their voices will be heard

Axios

Luigi Di Maio, leader of Italy's populist Five Star Movement party, goes to vote over the weekend. Photo: Salvatore Laporta / KONTROLAB / LightRocket via Getty Images

"Fueled by anger over immigration, a backlash against the European Union and resentment of an out-of-touch elite, anti-establishment parties are taking votes left, right and center from the traditional power players," per the WashPost's Griff Witte in Berlin and Michael Birnbaum in Rome.

Why it matters: The populists "generally aren’t winning enough support to govern. But they are claiming such a substantial share of the electorate that it has become all but impossible for the establishment to govern on its own."

"The result is a continent caught in a netherworld between a dying political order and a new one taking root."
"As voters vent their discontent with sclerotic political systems that never seem to address their grievances, hyper-fractured election results add layers of difficulty to the process of forming governments."
"The best that most leaders can do is to react and steer away from crisis."

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Populist parties in Europe ensure their voices will be heard

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