Far-right ID party faces unity test as it scrambles to get a seat at the table

The far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) party, recently plagued by major infighting, is looking to patch up the bonds between its national parties in preparation for a European Parliament that will likely veer to the right following the EU elections.

After Marine Le Pen’s Rassemblement National (RN) and the German AfD’s major fallout at the end of January, the two are now set to meet on Tuesday (6 February) to settle their differences.

“We are also very pleased with the cooperation in the ID, of course there are differences of opinion from time to time, but that is part of a democracy,“ AfD lead candidate Maximilian Krah told Euractiv ahead of his meeting with his French counterpart.

“We are confident that we will be able to continue this cooperation in the future,“ he added.

Le Pen had threatened that she would overthink her collaboration with the AfD at the EU level, as the German party was allegedly advocating for ‘remigration’ – expelling certain citizens with migration backgrounds even if they hold a German passport.

The AfD later backpedalled and clarified its stance on ‘remigration’ not to include any persons with a German passport to appease their French peers in ID.

The ID group is projected to become the third-largest force in the European Parliament, with the RN currently predicted to win a further eight seats, taking them up to 26 in total, while the AfD is expected to double in size, according to Europe Elects’ polls for Euractiv.

However, the incident with the AfD shows that the group might struggle to set common positions on specific policy issues, which would make collaboration with the other groups on the political right – namely the EPP and ECR – harder.

Ramping up internal cooperation?

So far, the ID has shunned away from many opportunities to find and formulate such a common position comprehensively. The party will for instance refrain from an election manifesto that would have put them on a common footing for the upcoming election.

“No ID manifesto is planned, as our programme was already formulated when the group was founded in 2019 and in the Antwerp Declaration, from which our rejection of uncontrolled migration and excessive climate policy also stems,” ID group vice-president Gunnar Beck, AfD MEP, told Euractiv.

In a similar vein, ID group president Marco Zanni stated that the party’s principles are “already in our statutes”, ranging from “the fight against illegal immigration, the battle against the green ideological extremism of this Commission, the challenge of the growing influence of Beijing”.

Zanni also expressed that they will attempt to ramp up the group’s functioning in view of strengthening collaboration after the EU elections.

“Of course, there will be some adjustments in the internal organisation, as it happens at the end of each term, to ensure the best possible functioning of the Group,” Zanni told Euractiv.

The French RN also appears to be eager to increase collaboration, with one of its leading MEPs, Jean-Paul Garraud, stating that the group could have more meetings to ensure cohesion. “The ID group could be more efficient,” he told Euractiv.

Pulling its weight in a new parliament

With ID appearing set for major gains, together with the national-conservative ECR and the centre-right EPP, the Parliament’s right-wing forces could reach a majority in the European Parliament for the first time in its history.

After the 2019 EU elections, the ID was still small enough to be excluded from policy-making. However, with the parliament veering to the right, this is unlikely to happen again.

“We are ready,” Zanni told Euractiv, stressing that the new configuration could harbour great opportunities for the far-right group.

“There is a possibility to change things, finally, without agreements with the left,” he said, and added that ID is already collaborating with ECR and EPP with “joint initiatives in Committees and in Plenary”.

In November 2022, for example, all right-wing forces allied to try toppling the contentious Nature Restoration Law.

Garraud pointed out to Euractiv that he seeks to collaborate with EPP in “issue-based alliances”, while nuances with ECR are becoming blurred, easing further collaboration opportunities, he said.

“Since the polls certify our growth everywhere, we are ready to face the challenges of the next Parliament, in order to bring the voice of our electors and create a strong and influential alternative to the current majority,” Zanni added.

Additional reporting by Paul Messad.

[Edited by Oliver Noyan/Nathalie Weatherald]