Economic Nationalism and the Populist Radical Right: The Cases of Alternative für Deutschland and Rassemblement National

Economic nationalism is becoming more prevalent in European politics, as populist radical right (PRR) parties, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) of Germany and Rassemblement National (RN) of France, are on the rise. By examining the economic policy agendas of European PRR parties, this article aims to contribute to the literature on the political economy of nationalism. The AfD and the RN have distinct ideas about defending and advancing the national economy. To clarify the differences in the economic nationalist ideologies of the major PRR parties in France and Germany, the article offers a comprehensive framework that identifies the main elements and subsets of economic nationalism. The framework that the article develops is based on six policy areas: protectionism, financial nationalism, disengagement from international economic cooperation, national industrial policy, protection of domestic workers, and resistance to foreign direct investment. Through an analysis of the election agendas of these two PRR parties, this study finds that the RN exhibits a much stronger form of economic nationalism than the AfD.