Young women are also turning to the far right.
They don't do it as quickly as younger men, but the trend is the same.
BrusselsThe far right is gaining support across all age groups and throughout the European Union. This upward trend is widespread and has reached all social groups, including young women. "They are the ones who vote least for the far right, but not because they are moving away from it, but because they are shifting towards it more slowly than men," explains Javier Carbonell, author of the latest report from the European Policy Center (EPC) and an expert on inequality, youth, and the far right, in a conversation with ARA.
The study by the Valencian researcher compiles socioeconomic data from Eurostat—the statistical office of the European Commission—and from the electoral results of the latest elections across the European Union. These data clearly show that, although more men under 30 (up to 27.7%) vote for the far right, there is also a growing number of young women becoming radicalized. In 2014, across all EU elections, just over 15% of women under 30 voted for the far right. This percentage, increasing more slowly than that of men, has grown to around 22% in 2023.
Carbonell attributes this increased support to economic reasons. The expert notes that there are increasingly more young women with university degrees and skilled jobs. Despite this, the researcher asserts that their "progress has occurred in parallel with a sharp decline in income, wealth, purchasing power, and access to housing for young people in general," which has meant that "what young women can actually buy has also decreased."
The study points out that "discontent with the labor market and housing" among some women is channeled through feminism and progressive political options, but this is a polarized social group, and some opt for a completely opposite reaction: "Nostalgia for a past in which women didn't have to work, vote, or open a bank account." In this sense, Carbonell notes that far-right women are becoming increasingly activist, especially to counteract the pull of feminism, and the imagery of women is gaining strength. tradwife, a type of influencers who defend traditional gender roles, centered on the home, child-rearing, and submission to the husband.
To remedy this and prevent young women from voting for the far right, Carbonell proposes focusing more on "addressing economic insecurity, the housing crisis, and the erosion of democratic standards," rather than on policies "focused exclusively on gender." She also laments that feminism, as well as progressive values in general, is seen by young people as "the new status quo"and the "normality", and emphasizes that this view should be reversed by making "gender equality movements adopt a more anti-establishment stance".