To Moderate or Not to Moderate. Radical Right Parties and Immigration Policies

To moderate or not to moderate. Radical right parties and immigration policies

Moderation theories generally presuppose that electoral competition drives parties to appeal to the median voter. Parties will moderate their positions  especially after electoral loss. Office seeking, - gaining credibility as coalition partner of mainstream parties - ,  may also be an important incentive to move towards median positions. However, political parties also value ideological continuity. Radical right parties sometimes display considerable ideological rigidity. The aim of this paper is twofold. First, the question will be addressed whether radical right parties have moderated their positions with respect to their core issues.  An analysis will be presented of the positions in the field of immigration and integration policy of six radical right parties in Western Europe over the past two decades.  The next step is to explore the factors that have driven radical right parties to tone down their positions or to hold on to their ideological profile.