Wealth, not poverty, is fueling the rise of new populism: The Guardian
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Phillip Inman argues that a growing number of financially secure, often older and less politically engaged voters are fueling the rise of far-right movements across Europe.
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Supporters of French far-right National Rally react at the party election night headquarters on June 9, 2024 in Paris (AP)
A growing number of voters are backing far-right candidates who champion tax cuts, deregulation, reduced immigration, and personal financial freedom, often embracing extreme policies without regard for their harmful consequences—raising concerns about the future influence of parties like Reform in the UK, National Rally in France, and AfD in Germany, according to Phillip Inman.
Inman notes in The Guardian that political scientists have long suspected a relationship between financial security and an almost revolutionary, devil-may-care attitude among an increasing number of voters.
He emphasizes a profound shift that explains the extinction of political groupings such as the home counties liberal Conservatives, who prioritize the rule of law, a mixed economy, and community spirit.
They will be replaced by legions of well-heeled suburban voters in major metropolitan regions who rarely read or listen to news and prefer to be left alone, particularly by the government.
It results in a distinct type of social contract, between the better-off baby boomers and the state, which agrees to keep the poor behind high walls and out of sight while allowing the affluent to keep their ill-gotten gains from 30 years of house price increases and final salary occupational pensions (conveniently cancelled across the private sector for future generations).
Oxford professors Jane Green and Raluca Pahontu discovered that financial security lessens people's risk aversion, making them more willing to take big political risks.
Inman contends that despite the fallout from Liz Truss’ brief premiership, the voters most harmed by her policies—educated, mortgage-holding millennials—were not her supporters, highlighting how age and education, rather than economic impact, have become key drivers of political alignment in recent UK elections.
According to Rob Ford, a professor of politics at the University of Manchester, the distinguishing features of voters in the previous three elections have been age and education.
The younger and more educated a person is, the more likely they are to identify as progressive, while the opposite is true for the right-wing.
Ford says rich boomers continue to vote more than other demographics, particularly the young.
Inman notes these are sad warnings for Coogan and anybody concerned that late-stage capitalism would lead to homes turning in on themselves, benefiting the professional classes and plutocrats who will keep their ill-gotten wealth.
Perhaps the Truss experiment will mark a turning moment. Trump's tariffs might be the beginning of another decade in which gamblers and hucksters promising lottery prizes for everybody are exposed as charlatans.
