Austria’s far-right Freedom Party (F.P.O.) won its first victory ever in a general election recently, marking the imminent rise of the recent conservative surge in Europe. The F.P.O. won by a larger margin than predicted by 28.8% compared to the opposing O.V.P. party which won 26.3% and the Social Democrats who won 21.1%. The party is led by Herbert Kickl who is widely regarded as a polarizing and controversial figure in Austrian politics. This election cycle was largely centered on issues of immigration and Russian relations. The F.P.O. promoted the idea of building a “fortress Austria,” which essentially means preventing migrants from entering. They supported stopping aid to Ukraine and lifting trade sanctions on Russia, claiming that these sanctions harmed Austria more than Russia. 

The results of this election reflect a wider popularization of far-right ideology sweeping through Western states. Across the world, far-right movements are increasingly becoming more present in democratic countries uniting under anti-immigration and nationalist rhetoric. As globalization has advanced, and economic and social struggles have become increasingly prominent issues in political discourse, political polarization has increased. This has pushed the development of the idea that these struggles are caused by globalization, immigration, and the elitism stereotypically associated with socialism or liberalism. This has been shown throughout recent European elections with right-wing candidates like Marine Le Pen in France, Geert Wilders in the Netherlands, and Victor Orban in Hungary. The storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021, due to former President Donald Trump’s claims of illegitimate election results has stood as a shocking demonstration of the influence this movement has had on democratic countries. Many political scientists and researchers have identified this phenomenon as an advancement towards democratic backsliding, in which democratic institutions and norms are challenged and questioned in favor of a more authoritarian government. The devolution of democracy comes when people start to dismiss the democratic rule of law to fulfill political agendas. 

The problem persists as political polarization continues to deepen in countries and populism has taken hold of electorates. This is a trend that continues for a multitude of reasons including globalization, identity politics, and multiculturalism. Polarization continues to define today’s political landscape, however, recent research has discovered a phenomenon in which it has been shown that while polarization worsens over time, right-leaning populations have shown a significantly higher level of extremism and dislike for opposing viewpoints. In the U.S., it has been proven that Republican officeholders have more often and more repeatedly tried to push Constitutional boundaries and go against established democratic norms. Many political scholars theorize that polarization is the natural gravitation of any political climate. New technological developments in media have also made nationalist sentiment much more easily spread. Whether this had been through channels that use incendiary rhetoric, spread misinformation, or algorithms giving posts with more controversy more attention, contemporary forms of media have contributed significantly to this trend in public sentiment as well. Because the origins of this issue are so vaguely defined and subjective, it is hard to develop a single solution to combat it. It is also incredibly difficult to quell nationalistic emotions when they have gained momentum. 

Any solution to address these issues must be made incrementally. To decrease polarization, more communication and transparency within political factions must be encouraged. Opening a neutral platform for discourse is incredibly important for different political factions to understand each other and potentially work together to solve issues in a bipartisan manner. International stages can be used as mediating spaces for domestic politics. Specifically, issues of immigration can also be discussed internationally to address the root of the problem instead of resorting to isolationism. The international cooperation and communication of states is essential, even to domestic politics. The E.U. must also address misinformation that is spread through online channels to keep the public accurately well-informed by developing more detection and fact-checking technology. The public should also be educated on media literacy and navigation of social media sites to avoid disinformation and misinformation. They must also be educated properly on the basic workings of the government to create more understanding of the legislative processes that affect them. The accurate education of the public is vital in changing such emotionally charged sentiment. 

The government must also build more trust with the public by addressing the economic and social issues that have been the trigger of this trend. To resolve public polarization, politicians themselves must work to create solutions to issues in non-topical ways for the good of the public. The E.U. must also reform its immigration system to have proper integration policies and management of the entire system such as developing a support system for E.U. countries that are on the front lines of receiving immigrants or streamlining the asylum application process. 

Far-right ideology shows a simplistic and topical understanding of the complexities of both domestic and international political systems and interactions. The rise of this ideology has only been spurred on by a lack of developed media regulations and education systems with poor curriculum on the way the government operates. There is also a lack of government accountability and action in solving the problems that have driven people to accept this movement. Austria’s F.P.O. is just one example of a political party that has turned to anti-multiculturalism and economic isolationism as a solution. To put a stop to the increasing extremism of conservative parties, there must be international platforms for open communication, developed media disinformation regulation, and proper channels of education for the public.