When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF
Can a second far-right party succeed in a country where the radical right was, until recently, absent? Spain’s 2024 European Parliament elections provided a striking answer with the emergence of SALF (“Let the Party Be Over”), a far-right anti-politics platform that captured 4.6% of the vote in its...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2025-08-01
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| Series: | Research & Politics |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/20531680251357602 |
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| author | Javier Padilla Moreno-Torres Álvaro Canalejo-Molero Alberto López Ortega |
| author_facet | Javier Padilla Moreno-Torres Álvaro Canalejo-Molero Alberto López Ortega |
| author_sort | Javier Padilla Moreno-Torres |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Can a second far-right party succeed in a country where the radical right was, until recently, absent? Spain’s 2024 European Parliament elections provided a striking answer with the emergence of SALF (“Let the Party Be Over”), a far-right anti-politics platform that captured 4.6% of the vote in its electoral debut, outperforming Podemos and the major regional parties. Through a comprehensive analysis of individual-level data from approximately 38,000 respondents across eleven surveys, we provide the first systematic assessment of SALF’s voters and compare them to other Spanish constituencies. First, our findings reveal an intriguing paradox: while SALF voters self-identify as more centrist than supporters of VOX (Spain’s main far-right party), their positions on substantive policies are similarly extreme. In contrast, SALF’s success stems from a distinctive combination of dissatisfaction with democracy and nontraditional media consumption patterns, especially among young male voters. Notably, while VOX’s earlier rise was primarily driven by Spain’s territorial tensions, SALF’s emergence signals a deeper phenomenon: profound disillusionment with Spain’s political system among specific segments of society. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ef89ca570e664599bef83e998bce0878 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2053-1680 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Research & Politics |
| spelling | doaj-art-ef89ca570e664599bef83e998bce08782025-08-20T03:41:02ZengSAGE PublishingResearch & Politics2053-16802025-08-011210.1177/20531680251357602When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALFJavier Padilla Moreno-TorresÁlvaro Canalejo-MoleroAlberto López OrtegaCan a second far-right party succeed in a country where the radical right was, until recently, absent? Spain’s 2024 European Parliament elections provided a striking answer with the emergence of SALF (“Let the Party Be Over”), a far-right anti-politics platform that captured 4.6% of the vote in its electoral debut, outperforming Podemos and the major regional parties. Through a comprehensive analysis of individual-level data from approximately 38,000 respondents across eleven surveys, we provide the first systematic assessment of SALF’s voters and compare them to other Spanish constituencies. First, our findings reveal an intriguing paradox: while SALF voters self-identify as more centrist than supporters of VOX (Spain’s main far-right party), their positions on substantive policies are similarly extreme. In contrast, SALF’s success stems from a distinctive combination of dissatisfaction with democracy and nontraditional media consumption patterns, especially among young male voters. Notably, while VOX’s earlier rise was primarily driven by Spain’s territorial tensions, SALF’s emergence signals a deeper phenomenon: profound disillusionment with Spain’s political system among specific segments of society.https://doi.org/10.1177/20531680251357602 |
| spellingShingle | Javier Padilla Moreno-Torres Álvaro Canalejo-Molero Alberto López Ortega When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF Research & Politics |
| title | When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF |
| title_full | When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF |
| title_fullStr | When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF |
| title_full_unstemmed | When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF |
| title_short | When the party is over: Explaining the rise of the Spanish far-right SALF |
| title_sort | when the party is over explaining the rise of the spanish far right salf |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/20531680251357602 |
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