Three tales of welfare chauvinism

This chapter examines how three parties of the radical right reinterpret the Nordic welfare model to serve a nativist purpose. These parties are the Danish People’s Party (Dansk Folkeparti, DF), the Finns Party (Perussuomalaiset/Sannfinländarna, PS), and the Sweden Democrats (Sverigedemokraterna, SD). The period under analysis stretches from 2009 to 2019, which saw the electoral consolidation of these parties, both in their respective national parliaments and in the European Parliament (EP). The chapter provides an empirical basis for theorizing welfare chauvinism as a hybrid ideological tenet that serves to underpin right-wing ideas (nativism, authoritarianism, and populism), despite its seemingly left-wing redistributive veneer (with its stress on the need to safeguard welfare provision). The chapter also sheds light on how welfare chauvinism functions as a political vehicle for the normalization of radical-right parties in Northern Europe.