Context and Consequence: The Impact of the New Radical Right on the Political Process in France and Germany
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International comparisons of new radical right-wing parties usually
focus on differences in electoral fortunes, party organizations, and
leadership styles and conclude that Germany stands out as a special
case of successful marginalization of the new radical right. Explanations
for this German anomaly point at the combined effects of German
history and institutional arrangements of the Federal Republic
of Germany, of ideological dilemmas and strategic failures of the
various parties of the new radical right, and the efforts of the established
political parties to prevent the rise of new parties to the right
of them. By implication, this means that, whereas in countries like
France or Austria the new radical right plays a significant role in politics
to the point of changing the political systems themselves, the
German counterpart has a negligible impact and has little or no
effects on politics and polity.