Economic Stances of Ultranationalist Parties in Western Europe

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The increasing electoral successes of ultranationalist parties in Western Europe have generated an immense number of terms to describe them with radical right, extreme right and populism being the most common denominations. In view of this scenario, the objective of this paper is to carry out a systematic analysis of the ideology of these parties in Western Europe and to compare them with those existing in Latin America. For this purpose, the Chapel Hill Expert Survey database has been used to describe these parties in nine socioeconomic areas. The main results found are that there is a noticeable difference depending on whether these parties are located on one side, or the opposite, of the Atlantic Ocean. Additionally, in Western Europe, they are far less liberal in the economic field than other ideological families. Particularly notorious is the radical position of ultranationalism defending protectionist positions in the face of global free trade. However, the differential aspect of ultranationalism compared to the rest of the ideological families is its postulate in favor of deeply restrictive immigration policies, being also the position that generates more consensus among the different parties united in this ideological family in Western Europe.