The political extremes and innovation: How support for extreme parties shapes overall and green scientific research and technological innovation in Europe

This paper explores the relationship between support for extreme political parties and research and innovation across regions in the European Union (EU). Extreme parties often exhibit deep scepticism towards expertise and science, with extreme right-wing parties, in particular, challenging the legitimacy of climate change; an attitude that may weaken green research and innovation. We draw on data from 1137 EU regions —including scientific publication and patent records— and apply Tobit regression models to find that stronger support for extreme parties is associated with lower levels of scientific research and technological innovation, both overall and in their green forms. While this pattern is visible across the political spectrum, important differences emerge. Support for extreme right-wing parties is consistently tied to reduced research output and innovation performance, particularly in green technological sectors. By contrast, the relationship with extreme left-wing support is more variable, depending on the degree of radicalism, and shows no consistent negative connection with green innovation. • Support for extreme political parties is linked to lower overall and green research and technological innovation at a regional level in the EU. • This result holds regardless of whether support for extreme left- or right-wing parties is considered. • Support for right-wing extreme parties has a more pronounced negative connection to green research and innovation. • Addressing the growing political discontent is crucial for achieving Europe's technological innovation goals.