The European People’s Party (EPP) is carefully navigating a complex political landscape in Brussels. While it officially avoids direct negotiations with far-right parties, the group has often relied on their support in the European Parliament—particularly on contentious issues like migration and deregulation. These topics, party leaders argue, reflect the priorities of voters who backed the EPP.
“We didn’t wish for this dynamic in the European Parliament,” said Manfred Weber, the EPP’s leader. “But these parties are here, and their votes count. Our guiding principle is to honor our commitments to voters.”
In the aftermath of the June Parliament elections, both Weber and the EPP have faced criticism from progressive groups—including the Socialists, liberals, and Greens—for allegedly shifting to the right. These critics accuse the party of aligning itself too closely with figures they see as extremist, such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her Brothers of Italy party. Weber, however, has described Meloni’s party as moderate enough to cooperate with in an informal parliamentary alliance referred to as the “Venezuela majority.”
Powerful figures in European politics call the EPP home, such as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Since last year’s elections, the EPP has maintained dominant positions across all three of the EU’s primary institutions—the Commission, the Parliament, and the Council—consolidating its influence over major policy decisions.
Weber, a member of Germany’s Christian Social Union (the Bavarian counterpart to Merz’s CDU), argued that the Party’s strong election performance, coupled with the rise of far-right parties, indicates a broader shift among European voters toward conservative solutions and a departure from the center-left consensus of the previous parliamentary term.
His vision moving forward? Collaborating with centrist allies to steer Europe in a rightward direction.
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