The Indo Daily: Ireland at odds – Is a far-right Europe here to stay?

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen delivers her speech at the party election night headquarters after French President Emanuel Macron announced he dissolves National Assembly and calls new legislative election following the defeat in EU vote, Sunday, June 9, 2024 in Paris. First projected results from France put far-right National Rally party well ahead in EU elections, according to French opinion poll institutes. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

The results are in, and the horse-trading has begun as Ireland’s new MEP’s rush to Brussels to try and establish a name and committee seat for the new term.

While far-right parties have made gains across Europe, Ireland won’t be sending any hardliners to Brussels.

But while our Government might be pleased with their day at the polls, in France, the president has taken a career-defining gamble. Emmanuel Macron has basically given voters an ultimatum by sending them back to the ballot box in three weeks’ time to choose a new parliament.

Marine Le Pen’s anti-immigration, nationalist party is estimated to get around 31pc of the vote, a historic result and more than double the share of Macron's Renaissance party, which is projected to reach around 15pc.

Macron, who lost his majority at the National Assembly in 2022, is taking a big risk with a move that could backfire and increase the chances of Le Pen eventually taking power. The French president said the decision was “serious” but showed “confidence in our democracy, in letting the sovereign people have their say”.

So, what do these elections say about the mood of the Irish and what do they mean for the future of European politics?

Today on The Indo Daily, Kevin Doyle is joined by John Downing, political correspondent with The Irish Independent, and Eleanor Beardsley, Paris correspondent with NPR, to discuss the latest upsurge in right-wing politics across Europe, and why Ireland has not quite followed suit - this time around.