Publikationen der Stiftung → Left behind by the working class?
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  • Is there a link between the electoral decline of Social democratic parties in Western Europe and the rise of radical right parties? A common narrative claims that social democratic parties have lost their working-class voters to radical right parties either because of their shift to the right on the economic dimension (“Third Way”) or because of their shift to the left on the cultural dimension (“identity politics”). The authors argue, based on empirical data, that this narrative is wrong in both its assumptions and its assertions. They show that the working class in Western Europe is not a monolithic white male block with authoritarian and nationalist attitudes. Also, the radical right is not the new home of former social democratic voters. The loss of the (white) working class is not the driving force behind the electoral decline of social democratic parties. Experimental and survey data shows that potential social democratic voters prefer old left and new left programmes over centrist and left-nationalist strategies. Therefore, the authors conclude that combining aspects of old and new left strategies constitutes the most promising avenue forward for social democratic parties.