The workshop aims to primarily analyse and compare the evolving issue positions of radical left and right political actors in response to several global crises, including the refugee crisis and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. By focusing on both the supply and demand side of politics, the workshop will explore how these parties and their voters have navigated traditionally divisive issues and whether the ideological gap between the far right and the radical left has narrowed or widened. The workshop will bring together leading as well as early career scholars specializing in radical left and right political movements.

REGISTRATION: hait@tu-dresden.de

Directors:

Uwe Backes, Hannah Arendt Institut für Totalitarismusforschung

Hans Vorländer, MIDEM, TU Dresden

Scientific organisers:

Oliviero Angeli, MIDEM, TU Dresden

Jakub Wondreys, Hannah Arendt Institut für Totalitarismusforschung

Programme

Day 1 – June 3, 2025

13:30–14:00: Registration and Welcome

14:00–14:20: Opening Remarks

Hans Vorländer (Director, MIDEM)

Uwe Backes (Director, HAIT)

14:20–15:00: Keynote

Cas Mudde (University of Georgia, USA)

From Extremism Theory to Populism Studies: Studying the Far Right and Far Left Together

15:00–15:15: Break

15:15–17:00: Panel I: Radical Right Reactions to Migration Crises 

Philipp Lutz (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

Till (Mis-)perceptions Do Us Part: The Divide on Immigration in the Mind of Citizens

Mariana Mendes (MIDEM), Cyrill Otteni (MIDEM)

When they leave, we turn right: Emigration concerns and far-right voting

Daniel Keith (University of York)

Responding to the Right? Radical Left Party Immigration Policy

17:00–17:15: Break

17:15–19:00: Panel II: Radical Left and Right: Voter Profiles and Cross-Cutting Issues

Maik Herold (MIDEM), Felix Hormig (MIDEM)

Conspiracy belief and conspiracy mentality among supporters of the radical left and right

Sarah Wagner (Queen’s University Belfast)

Radical Left Parties and Issue Salience

Petar Bankov (University of Glasgow)

Praxis and practice: lessons from and on teaching left radicalism at university level

Day 2 – June 4, 2025

09:30–11:15: Panel III: Radical Right and Left Responses to Climate, Cultural and Foreign Policy Issues  

Jakub Wondreys (HAIT) and Luke March (University of Edinburgh)

Comparing Radical Left Party Positions on the Ukraine and Gaza conflicts: Between Russophilia and Anti-Semitism?

Manès Weisskircher (REXKLIMA, TU Dresden), Zadekia Krondorfer (REXKLIMA, HAIT), Elisabeth Oertel (REXKLIMA, TU Dresden), Leonie Singer (REXKLIMA, TU Dresden)

The Far Right’s Impact on Climate Action? The Role of Conservative Parties and the Political Conflict over Wind Power in Forests

Gabriela Greilinger (University of Georgia, USA)

Left and Right Political Radicalism in Austria: Party Positions, Local Context, and Opportunity Structures during Crises

11:15–11:30: Final Discussion and Conclusions

MIDEM Lecture Hall, TU Dresden, Würzburger Str. 46, 01187 Dresden