Historical Shadows: The Far-Right Surge in Germany and Austria

“For far too long, their concerns were ignored by center and left-wing parties, and so they turned elsewhere.”

Much has been made of the rise of right-wing populism in Europe. The recent European Union (EU) elections have highlighted this trend once more. However, as an Austrian living in Germany, I feel that the overwhelming success of Austria’s Freedom Party (FPÖ) and Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) in these elections—the former securing first place and the latter the runner-up position in their respective countries—carries a different significance given the historical context. There is also the question of who is to blame for these far-right parties’ dramatic gain in votes.

While the AfD is a relatively new party, founded in 2013, the FPÖ emerged from the Federation of Independents (VdU), a German-nationalist and national-liberal party aimed at former Nazis, in 1956. However, much like the nascent AfD, the FPÖ initially focused on economic liberalism, led by moderates. It was not until 1986, when Jörg Haider assumed the lead in a coup, that the nationalist wing of the party finally took over. It is important to stress that theirs was a nationalism rooted in German identity, viewing Austria as a German nation.

Haider, who died in a car crash in 2008, transformed the FPÖ into the populist anti-immigration party it is today. Like many other party officials, he consistently failed to distance himself from the Nazi period. For instance, speaking at a gathering of Waffen-SS veterans, he said, “It’s reassuring to know that there are still decent people in this world, with strong character, who stand by their convictions even in the face of strong opposition and have remained true to their beliefs to this day”; and during a television debate, he asserted that “they had effective employment policies in the Third Reich” (my translations).