The Telegraph: The left worldwide hits rock bottom, popularity at an all-time low

“The Telegraph”: Left-Wing Popularity at an All-Time Low Worldwide

The popularity of left-wing parties worldwide is at its historically lowest point. The survey was published in the British newspaper The Telegraph. By comparing statistical data and election results in 73 countries, the study concludes that left-wing factions are currently more unpopular than ever since the end of the Cold War (1947–1991).

The analysis comes after a year of electoral triumphs for conservatives around the world, culminating in the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States.

In Western Europe and the US, left-wing parties secured only 42.3% of the votes, while the right received 55.7%, marking the largest gap in vote share since 1990. Even the far right reached a record vote share of 14.7%, thanks to alarming performances in elections from France to Panama.

The decline of the left is also being felt in Latin America, a stronghold of socialism after the years of violent fascist dictatorships. After Donald Trump’s inauguration, political defeats for the left are expected in Canada, Australia, and Germany, the largest economy in the EU.

What Analysts Say

“The trend towards the right is rising. There is no compelling reason to believe that this trend will stop anytime soon,” said Professor Matthijs Rooduijn, a political scientist from the University of Amsterdam, to The Telegraph.

Meanwhile, Jeremy Cliffe, editorial director and fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, states that the global shift to the right is the result of three interconnected trends: “The decline of organized labor driven by globalization, the strengthening of identity politics which is more successfully exploited by the right than the left, and the general trend of left-wing forces which are mostly fragmented rather than united.”

In the US, Trump won the popular vote in last November’s elections, securing 77 million votes compared to the 75 million votes for Democrat Kamala Harris. In Canada, polls show that Pierre Poilievre, a populist politician nicknamed “Canada’s Trump,” is the favorite to replace Justin Trudeau as prime minister. In Australia, conservatives have moved ahead of the Labor government in opinion polls ahead of elections to be held in 2025.

The European Scene

At the same time, right-wing parties in Europe “broadened” an almost historic gap from their left-wing opponents, which is now approaching 14%, in the most recent electoral contests in the Old Continent. The Labour Party’s overwhelming victory in the United Kingdom was the only consolation for the left. However, this smile is not expected to last long, as the first YouGov/Times poll after the 2024 general elections showed a neck-and-neck race between the Labour Party (26%) and the Reformists (25%). The Conservative Party has dropped to third place with 22%.

In Western Europe, the far right made gains, recording a record average vote share of 16.9% in France, Austria, Germany, and elsewhere. Voters across the EU handed victory to center-right parties in last year’s European elections, but the far-right factions such as the Alternative for Germany (AfD), the National Rally of France, and the Freedom Party of Austria achieved strong results.

In France, Emmanuel Macron’s decision to call early elections after Marine Le Pen’s National Rally won the European elections has thrown French politics into turmoil and rendered Macron powerless. The National Rally was prevented from taking power due to a coalition of all left-wing parties. However, Le Pen’s party is now the largest in the French parliament and overthrew Barnier’s minority government in just three months.

In Austria, the far-right, pro-Putin Freedom Party won parliamentary elections for the first time and is now expected to form a coalition government. In Germany, the conservative CDU is expected to win the upcoming parliamentary elections in February. The far-right AfD is in second place, ahead of the unpopular left-wing Social Democratic Party of Olaf Scholz. Last year, AfD won regional elections, becoming the first far-right party to do so in Germany since World War II and the fall of the Nazi party.

2024 was the worst year for left-wing parties in Central and Eastern Europe since the fall of the Iron Curtain. The center-right won in Croatia and Bulgaria. The far right won the already canceled elections in Romania. In the Czech Republic, Andrej Babic, a far-right populist businessman and Trump imitator, is expected to win this year’s elections, leading by at least 14 points in the latest polls.

Experts say that the success of populist right-wing parties is due to the strengthening of anti-immigration stances in Europe. At the same time, far-right politicians are gaining more access, and their messages are having a greater impact on society through social media, a tool they did not have in the past.

Historical Strongholds “Collapsing” in Latin America

At the same time, the overwhelming embrace of the left in Latin America’s political scene has weakened since the late 2000s, following victories by leaders like Argentina’s Javier Milei. After the 2024 elections, the left-wing vote share was 51.6%, the lowest in over 30 years. Meanwhile, the right-wing vote has remained at 40% since 2018.

In 2023, Paraguay elected the conservative Santiago Peña, and Ecuador elected center-right candidate Daniel Noboa. That same year, the eccentric Milei became president of Argentina with promises of cuts to the public sector. He will face midterm elections in 2025, but so far, his party is doing well in the polls.

According to Dr. Christopher Sabatini, a researcher on Latin America and the US at Chatham House, left-wing parties have seen a decline in their vote share due to government ineptitude, excessive promises, and corruption. “Over the last two decades, voters’ concerns about crime and violence have increased. This is an area where the left has failed to produce many results or a sustainable response,” he told The Telegraph.

Jair Bolsonaro, known as “Trump of the Tropics,” lost the 2022 elections, but his party remains the largest in the Brazilian parliament. Analysts believe that Trump’s return to power in the US will also benefit “mini-Trumps” in Latin American countries.

What’s Happening in Asia and Australia

In Asia and Australia, the right maintained its dominance in politics with 55.6% of the vote, the highest average since 2017. New Zealand’s left-wing Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern resigned in 2023 and was replaced by Christopher Luxon, leader of the center-right National Party. In Australia, the right-wing Liberal-National Party coalition has taken the lead in polls ahead of elections this year.

Last year, Japan’s right-wing Liberal Democratic Party lost its majority, but the rise of smaller far-right parties helped increase the vote share of the country’s right-wing to 63.87%. In India, the world’s largest democracy, Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were elected for a third term in June 2024. However, the opposition coalition of center and center-left Indian National Congress saw no increase in votes.

Historically High… Decline in Africa and the Middle East

In 8 democracies in Africa and the Middle East, left-wing vote share fell to a record low of 54.2% in 2024. For most of the last 30 years, left-wing parties have always held over 60% of the vote share, but this has declined following a long period of scandals and financial mismanagement.

In South Africa, the continent’s largest economy, the center-left African National Congress failed to secure the parliamentary majority it had held since the post-apartheid elections of 1994.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party has been in power in Israel since 2020. The next elections won’t take place until 2027, but Likud, which is in a coalition with 4 far-right parties, is still ahead in the polls, despite Netanyahu’s handling of Gaza and the hostage crisis after the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack by Hamas.

Despite all this, the Labour Party’s overwhelming victory in the United Kingdom was one of the few successes for the left in 2024, but even this phenomenon is not expected to last long. The YouGov/Times poll shows a close race between Labour and the Reformists in the UK, with 26% and 25%, respectively. The Conservative Party is very close in third place, with 22% of the vote.

All of the above clearly shows that the left will need to reconsider its policies worldwide and seek partnerships, possibly even contradicting the divisive logics that dominate its DNA. A change in leadership is also seen as imperative in order to inspire younger voters. Otherwise, 2025 could be an even worse year for left-wing parties worldwide.

The Telegraph

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