This thesis investigates the potential relationship between support for radical right-wing parties and the increased employment rates of women in member states of the European Union. While previous research has predominantly focused on immigration, by virtue of grievances, as a driver of radical right-wing support, this study explores whether increases in the employment ratio of women can also be perceived as a threat and contribute to this support. The rationale for examining this assumption is rooted in the understanding of radical right-wing parties as Männerparteien, being primarily supported and led by men. By analyzing time-series cross-sectional data from thirteen EU member states over twenty time periods, this study reveals a positive correlation between the employment rates of women and support for radical right-wing parties. This finding aligns with the concept of group threat theory, suggesting that increases in the employment ratio of women can indeed be perceived as a threat. The finding highlights the complex dynamics and potential resistance that arise when traditional power dynamics are challenged, emphasizing the need for comprehensive approaches to address these barriers and promote gender equality. The study also reveals a positive correlation between support for radical right-wing parties and the attainment of advanced education for men, as well as a negative correlation between radical right-wing support and increased GDP. The findings offer valuable insights to previous research and lay the groundwork for future studies in various research fields by yielding further insights into the group dynamics between men and women and by proposing the use of additional explanatory variables in explaining radical right-wing support.

This thesis aims to contribute to the study of how established political parties deal with an increasingly popular radical right parties, focusing on the case of Sweden and the Sweden Democrats (SD). Swedish parties have had a different approach compared to established parties in other European countries, when being challenged by the radical right. The trend has been that the major parties have formed government with support of the radical right and also adapting some of their political positions, in order to regain lost voters. Although, in the case of Sweden, the initial strategy of the major parties was to distance themselves from SD:s policies, while also making efforts to isolate them from positions of power and minimizing their influence in all levels of government.  Anders Backlund (2020) has studied the case of Sweden and argues, with the use of the modified spatial theory (Meguid 2008), that the initially rejective strategy of the major parties towards SD, might have forced them to adapt their policies to a large extent further down the line. The thesis explores Sweden as a least-likely case for a theory-testing purpose. Through the means of a combination of qualitative and quantitative content analysis the election manifestos from all parliamentary parties in Sweden, from the last five elections are being analyzed. The thesis tries to explain to what extent, and in what manner, the parliamentary parties have adapted their policies to those of SD – and furthermore, to what degree these adaptations can be explained in terms of the strategic pursuit of votes.  The Sweden Democrats are placed far out on the TAN-scale, on the socio-cultural political conflict dimension GAL-TAN – where TAN stands for Tradition, Authoritarianism and Nationalism. Therefore, the extent to which the remaining parties have included policies related to TAN in their election manifestos is examined. The result shows that most parties in Sweden increasingly have included policies related to TAN in their election manifestos for the more recent elections – hence showing an adaptation to both SD:s policy suggestions and their way to formulate issues. Especially the parties that have been shown to lose particularly many voters to SD, but also the parties that are not competing for their votes to any bigger extent, exhibit a political conformity in the direction of SD.  The thesis strengthens the modified spatial theory by highlighting how Swedish parties swiftly have modified their strategy of handling SD – from initial rejection, to adaptation of rhetoric and policy. The thesis further contributes a few theoretical adjustments, to more fully explain how all major Swedish parties have managed their strategies when facing the increasing popularity of SD.

Given the tendency of Populist Radical Right (PRR) parties to form anti-LGBTQ+ claims, this thesis aims to understand how a PRR party operating in a context characterized by progressive values relates to LGBTQ+ topics in their political messages on social media. A single case study of the Sweden Democrats (SD) – an example of a PRR party operating in such a context – was conducted. Idea analysis, which included the concepts of homonationalism and heteroactivism, was performed on 44 posts published during the year following the 2022 election on the social media platform X by politicians representing the SD in the national parliament. The results show that the SD pursued a homonationalist discourse in that they advocated LGBTQ+ rights to oppose Islam in general and Muslim integration in Sweden in particular. However, when the SD solely focused on the Swedish domestic context, LGBTQ+ rights were not promoted, but rather heteronormativity was favored above non-normative relationships, gender identities, and gender expressions. Thus, the results suggest that the SD took part in heteroactivism. Moreover, while the SD avoided outspoken homophobic statements, transphobic ideas were evident. Hence, the SD adapted to the Swedish context by performing a balancing act where they weighed the expression of heteronormative ideals against the potential loss of acceptance from a public supporting LGBTQ+ rights. Altogether, these results contribute to research on PRR parties operating in contexts characterized by progressive values as well as research on the SD concerning LGBTQ+ topics.

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The main research question of this thesis is how history is used for political gain by the far-right in Finland. The aim is to study not only the use of history but, rather, specifically, the patterns of that use. Two theories have been utilized. The first is the far-right as a milieu, as presented by Colin Campbell in the cultic milieu theory, which would shed light on the fragmentation of the milieu. And the second is the waves theory by David C. Rapoport, which would shed light on the persistence of far-right violence and militancy through time. I have utilized Pieter Geyl’s analysis of the use of history in identifying patterns of use even though it is not considered a theory per my knowledge. Methods applied are content analysis, netnography, comparative and discourse analysis. Through the utilization of these theories and methods applied to the source material, I have found that the Finnish far-right uses history in six different ways, which are centralized around both the use of national history and the predecessor’s history.

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In 2010, the populist radical right party the Sweden Democrats were voted into the Swedish parliament, which rattled the mainstream parties. The Sweden Democrats’ stance on migration policy was clear from the start, with their MPs promoting a radical decrease, if not a complete stop, to all immigration. This thesis aims to expand the existing research about populism in Sweden and contribute to the field of political science by analysing the general policy debates on migration policy held after the entry of the Sweden Democrats into parliament. The study examines the debates to get answers to several questions: What do politicians think is the main problem with migration policy over the years and how are the problems represented? Is it possible to find indications of populism during the debates and are there signs of the Sweden Democrats' discourse being normalized? Are there any discursive shifts made by the mainstream parties and is there a hegemonic discourse visible throughout the debates? The results show four dominating problem representations on the topic of migration over the years, with the problem representation of the Sweden Democrats gaining support from the Liberals and the Christian Democrats in the debate of 2018. Tendencies of normalization of the Sweden Democrats’ discourse are also detectable in the 2018 debate, as well as some discursive shifts by mainstream parties. A hegemonic discourse is visible during the 2010 and 2014 debates, but it has lost its hegemonic position during the 2018 debate.

Populist radical right (PRR) political parties have become important players in many European countries. These parties generally have a core ideology of ethnic nationalism supported by antiestablishment populism and sociocultural authoritarianism. PRR parties have managed to find electoral success in many European countries over the last few decades, usually at the expense of more established mainstream parties. The success of PRR parties is dependent on both voters and the parties themselves. In other words, parties must frame issues in a way that appeals to at least some voters while voters must have some reason for supporting these parties. This thesis looks at Denmark and Sweden, two countries with relatively similar cultures, political systems, and economies that have had different experiences with PRR parties. An analysis of socioeconomic factors highlights certain traits that makes voters more likely to vote for PRR parties, namely education and unemployment. Additionally, PRR party rhetoric likely appeals to socioeconomically disadvantaged voters by promising improved welfare and shifting the blame for their troubles to immigrants. In sum, this thesis suggests that PRR parties will continue to find electoral success as long as immigration maintains a high level of political salience, as PRR parties can use anti-immigration rhetoric to attract the socioeconomically disadvantaged. / Master of Arts / Populist radical right (PRR) political parties have become important players in many European countries. These parties generally have a core ideology of ethnic nationalism, a form of nationalism defined by ethnicity and focusing on a shared heritage. PRR parties also generally espouse antiestablishment populism by trying to appeal to the masses through critques of the government and established political parties. These parties also tend to embrace sociocultural authoritarianism, the desire for strict obedience to authority as it pertains to society and culture. This thesis looks at Denmark and Sweden, two countries with relatively similar cultures, political systems, and economies that have had different experiences with PRR parties. However, PRR parties have been electorally successful in both countries over the last decade. This thesis examines socioeconomic factors that may affect the likelihood of voters to vote for PRR parties, and determines that education and unemployment can play a large role in voter attitudes. Additionally, this thesis analyzes PRR party rhetoric and ascertains that these parties likely appeal to socioeconomically disadvantaged voters. In sum, this thesis suggests that PRR parties will continue to find electoral success as long as immigration remains an important political issue, as PRR parties can use anti-immigration rhetoric to attract the socioeconomically disadvantaged.

The inclusion-moderation thesis argues that, as radical parties become included in coalition governments, their positions and rhetoric will moderate as a consequence of compromising with, and adapting to the parties they are governing with. With lacking empirical evidence, however, the effects of inclusion on radical parties are still not clear. The Sweden Democrats (SD), a Swedish radical right-wing populist party, became the country’s second largest party after the election of 2022 and received considerable influence through the “Tidö-agreement” with the new coalition government. They are thus a recent example of a radical right populist party gaining influence in Europe. This paper examines the rhetoric of the SD’s party leader, Jimmie Åkesson, before and after the election of 2022 through qualitative content analysis. The findings indicate that no moderation has taken place in their radical right populist rhetoric after inclusion. Furthermore, the nativist aspect of their rhetoric seems to have become far more pronounced, and increasingly influences other aspects of their rhetoric as well.

This thesis examines and explains how the three Scandinavian populist radical right parties, the Sweden Democrats, the Danish People’s Party and the Progress Party approaches the climate issue in their latest manifesto, and how it has changed over a period of ten years. By means of a content analysis and categorisations of climate scepticism, climate omission and climate measures, this thesis finds explicit evidence of climate scepticism in the Progress Party whereas there is no such evidence for the Sweden Democrats and the Danish People’s Party completely omits the issue. On the other hand, there is evidence of measures to fight climate change in the Progress Party, and the same goes for the Sweden Democrats. However, the only relevant difference when comparing the manifestos over a ten-year period is a decreased usage of statement connected to both climate scepticism and climate action in the Progress Party’s manifestos.