The Radical Right in The Alps

Abstract

The Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) and the Swiss People's Party (SVP) in 1999 became the only far-right parties in post-war Western Europe to outpoll their mainstream conservative competitors. As such, they are limiting cases and yield a great deal of information about the development and prospects for the far-right in Europe. We analyze the evolution and success of these parties, using survey data to track their changing electorates. We find that the FPÖ and SVP have evolved into the typical profile of ‘new radical-right’ parties in terms of their appeal and supporters. However, they have also been able to appeal to a broader electorate, which in part explains their success.