What are the factors that fuel the electoral success of right-wing Eurosceptic parties and leaders?
In a recently published open access article co-authored with Ana-Maria Bliuc, Avelie Stuart, Constantina Badea, Daniela Muntele and Craig McGarty, we examine empirical evidence about the role of terrorism perceived threat in boosting support for Eurosceptic parties in Europe.
Based on media reports, one might think that the threat of terrorism may have played a role in boosting the electoral support for right-wing Eurosceptic parties. For example, the results of the 2015 French regional elections might suggest that electoral support for the National Front increased in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks. However, research looking at European attitudes before and after the Paris terrorist attacks found that there is no evidence of average impacts across a range of issues, from xenophobia, political attitudes and policy preferences. Similarly, a subsequent study found no evidence of the impact of the 2016 Berlin terrorist attack on anti-immigration, anti-refugee and anti-European Union sentiment.
We used Eurobarometer data and four experimental studies conducted in Italy, France, Romania and the UK to investigate the relationships between perceived threats (i.e., terrorism, but also economic and immigration) and support for Euroscepticism and right-wing Eurosceptic parties.
We find that terrorism threat is a smaller predictor of Euroscepticism than the perceived threat of immigration, and that its effects are not consistent across countries.
You can read the full article here.