The Rise of Populist Parties in Europe; The Case of PVV in The Netherlands

The term “Populism” has affected political order in Europe since 1990s and populist parties get condereable number of votes in current period. Appearing as xenophobia, racism, corruption, unemployment, and intolerance to other religions, populism has gained base not only in far-right but also in far-left. Rise of populist parties is also a threat to the European Union (EU) and bring into minds the possibility of dissolution of the Union in the long-term. Thus, for example, the role of populist parties had great impact on Brexit. Among all European populist parties, the Netherlands based Partij voor de Vrijheid (PVV) is the most different one. PVV, whose president and the only member is Geert Wilders, is mostly different as it is not anti-semitist and get financial help from Jewish lobby and Israel. Though being a racist party, PVV is selective in xenophobia. The party is particularly hostile to Islam and organizes anti-Islamist campaigns. This study, besides providing special information about European populist parties, aims to reveal PVV’s unique characteristics and party leader Geert Wilders’ impact on politics and racism