Ahead of the most consequential European elections of recent times, the signs of a significant rightward shift are unmistakable. In France, Marine Le Pen’s Rassemblement National is now polling more than double its nearest rivals and looks set to record a disturbingly decisive victory. In Germany, the far-right AfD is out-polling all three parties in the governing coalition, despite being embroiled in a series of high-profile scandals.
Whether such parties will be capable of forming a cohesive force after the election is another matter. As a Guardian investigation into their funding reveals on Thursday, the financial backing is there. But the pan-European radical right is split into fractious and rivalrous blocs, and internally divided over issues such as the war in Ukraine. The AfD has just been expelled from the Identity and Democracy group, after its former lead candidate, Maximilian Krah, sought to exculpate the actions of some members of the Nazi SS. Nevertheless, the rise of nationalist, populist and Eurosceptic parties across the continent has become a defining phenomenon of the times.
