Italy’s Matteo Salvini has hailed the strong electoral performance of the populist Sweden Democrats over the weekend, and promised more gains in next year’s EU elections.
“Sweden, the homeland of multiculturalism and model of the left, after years of wild immigration has finally decided to change,” observed Salvini, who became Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior in Italy’s new League/Five-Star Movement populist coalition government after this year’s shock elections.
“Now [the Swedes] say no to this Europe of bureaucrats and speculators, no to illegal immigrants, no to Islamic extremism,” he added.
“[Sweden Democrats leader] Jimmie Åkesson’s strong statement is yet another notice of eviction to the socialists… in the European elections, we will complete the work of change based on labour, security, and family values.”
The 18 per cent level achieved by the Sweden Democrats in this election is a far cry from the significant electoral gains seen by Salvini’s own movement in Italy, but resemble a distinct development in Sweden, a traditionally left-wing country. Although the result may not bring the Sweden Democrats into government through a coalition, it nonetheless helped achieve the lowest polling result for the ruling Social Democrats in a century.
The League (Lega) leader’s words echo similar comments by Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, who sees the EU Parliament elections next year as an opportunity to deliver a heavy blow to “the elite of ’68” and block their “great goal of transforming Europe and moving it towards a post-Christian and post-national era”.
“In European politics it is the turn of the anti-communist generation, which has Christian convictions and commitment to the nation,” he declared.
Populist, civic nationalist, and more traditionally conservative parties have been making huge gains across the EU in countries such as Austria and Italy alongside more modest advanced in Sweden and Germany — which, even if they have failed to elevate the upstart anti-mass migration parties to power, have at any rate succeeded in forcing the establishment ‘centre-right’ to walk back from the open borders borders policies of 2015 to stave them off.
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