The appeal of the radical-right: authoritarian attitudes of the “Democratic” voter

Abstract

As the 21st century progresses, we are experiencing a revival in radical right-wing parties in the western world. Generally, we only refer this term to European politics; however, with the rise of the Tea Party and the election of Donald Trump, America now faces this issue too. The influence of these parties even affect German politics as well since their Alternative for Deutschland is now the third largest party in their government. Many factors can cause this phenomenon – including immigration, economy, and political corruption. However, authoritarianism can link all these variables together since they all share universal values. Authoritarianism defines individuals as being fearful of change since they value their traditional social structures. Thus, with the evolving political and economic landscapes of the western world, these voters are afraid of losing their values that have been in place for centuries. Therefore, we predict that if a voter has attitudinal beliefs towards authoritarianism, it will likely predict their vote and their opinions on immigration, economy, and political corruption.