The contemporary far right is unlike the far right of the 1930s or the 1980s; it is neither openly anti-democratic nor politically marginal. This notwithstanding, much academic and non-academic debate on the contemporary far right is primarily informed by theories (and received wisdom) based on those two periods. Given that the far right has been mainstreamed and normalised today, we must rethink both its distinctiveness and its role in the broader political system. To understand far-right parties in particular, we learn more from looking at contemporary “mainstream” parties than from historical far-right parties. To understand—and resist—democratic erosion, it is essential to recognise that the far right has become an integral part of the political mainstream, operating from within rather than on the outside, and in conjunction with mainstream forces, rather than independently.
Cas Mudde is the Stanley Wade Shelton Professor in International Affairs and a Distinguished Research Professor at the University of Georgia. Most of his research has focused on far-right and populist politics, particularly in the context of party politics in the Global North. He is currently working on three research projects: (1) Rethinking the Far Right, (2) Soccer and Democracy, and (3) The Transformation of European Politics with Tarik About-Chadi. Among his recent publications are The Far Right Today (2019) and Populism: A Very Short Introduction (2017), co-authored with Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser.
Ivan Krastev, IWM Albert Hirschman Permanent Fellow, will comment on the lecture and moderate the subsequent discussion.
