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Right surges in Europe: What to know and what it means for US

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Right surges in Europe: What to know and what it means for US

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The success of right-wing parties in the recent European Parliament elections has shocked the continent and countries around the world, indicating a potential bellwether for the upcoming U.S. presidential election. 

Voters across the 27 member states that make up the European bloc voted between June 6 and 9, with the results keeping European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s center-right European People’s Party (EPP) Group in the majority with 189 of the 720 seats available, but seeing a significant shift from the left to right across the remaining groups.

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Here’s what happened, along with the winners and losers of this surprising electoral result.

EUROPE’S VOTING AGENDA

The results in Europe could indicate a continuing global shift to the right during one of the busiest election years on record: Over 50 countries had elections scheduled this year, even before France announced a snap election due to the European Parliament results, according to the Associated Press.

With U.S. politics so tightly poised ahead of the 2024 elections, analysts will look to the other global contests to get some sense as to universal voter sentiments — recalling that the historic and surprise Brexit vote preceded Donald Trump’s own surprise victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016 — particularly as similar issues appear to trouble both Europeans and Americans despite the Atlantic divide. 

The successive wins of Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV) in the national and European elections, for example, have cemented the Netherlands’ shift to the right. Wilders gave up his bid to become prime minister, but seemingly ensured a PVV-led government that will prove to be the country’s most conservative one in decades. 

Leader of the Party for Freedom (PVV) Geert Wilders speaks to the press after a meeting with Speaker of the House at the House of Representatives in The Hague, on November 24, 2023. After his shock election win, far-right Dutch firebrand Geert Wilders on Friday kicked off the formal process of building a government coalition, battling to convince reluctant rivals to serve under him as premier.  (Sem van der Wal/ANP/AFP via Getty Images)

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“The Greens and Liberals are big losers,” Wilders wrote on social media platform X. “They will lose many seats in the European Parliament. On the other hand, the PVV is winning big, just like our friends in France, Belgium, Austria, Portugal and many other countries. It was a very beautiful election day!” 

London-based think tank Chatham House cited immigration as one of the primary issues that right-wing parties have pushed to the forefront of voters’ minds. They also cited “genuine” grievances about healthcare, housing and an ongoing cost of living crisis as issues that voters had on their minds when they went to the polls this month. 

Support for Ukraine also remains a key issue, though the think tank warns it is “perhaps the least controversial foreign policy issue,” instead focusing on the question of E.U. membership expansion: Russia’s invasion prompted Finland and Sweden to break decades-long policies of neutrality and to join the union. 

HOW DOES THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT WORK? 

The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) gained 21 seats and became the third-biggest European party, and the Rassemblement National (NA) party in France will have 30 seats overall, giving right-wing parties a significant presence in the parliament. Meanwhile, the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), the liberal Renew Europe, Independent and Democracy (ID) and Greens/European Free Alliance (EFA) each lost over a dozen seats.

Much like the U.S. House of Representatives, the number of MEPs depends on the population of their parent country: Austria, for instance, has 20 seats, while Cyprus has only six seats. Germany and France top the count with 96 and 81 seats each, while Italy has 76 seats, Spain has 61, and the Netherlands has 31 seats. 

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Tino Chrupalla and Alice Weidel, co-leaders of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) political party, celebrate at the AfD election evening gathering following the release of initial election results in European parliamentary elections on June 9, 2024, in Berlin, Germany. Elections to the European Parliament have been taking place since June 6 across European Union member states and are concluding tonight.  (Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

The ECR will have 83 seats with by far the biggest gains, though media tried to position the EPP’s gains as a bigger story after the party had lost seats in previous elections. ECR also registered strong numbers in Poland, where it gained 20 seats, as a runner-up to EPP, which indicates the divided nature of politics in many European countries. 

National parties in each country take seats and then filter into one of the parliamentary groups, which means that wins from parties such as Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) — which enters the European Parliament for the first time with 15 seats — and Wilders’ PVV, helped bolster ECR’s standing.

A party needs at least 23 MEPs from seven member states to have a presence in the European Parliament, according to Reuters. This means that winning even one seat — especially in countries that have only a handful of MEPs to elect — in some countries often proves a vital step in securing a place at the table. 

WHAT DOES A RIGHT-WING WIN MEAN FOR EUROPE?

In Germany, EPP won its most seats, followed by NA and Greens, while France saw ID take command over S&D and Macron’s own party, Renew. Italy gave ECR its biggest win, with S&D the runner-up by only a few seats. Spain gave both EPP and S&D strong support, while the Netherlands virtually provided even support to Renew, EPP and ID each. 

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Politicians on the left have voiced concerns that ECR’s major success has given the right a significant bargaining chip in future policy discussions, with the ruling EPP likely to engage with them as needed to pass its desired legislation and giving the right wing more of a hand in pushing its own agenda. 

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks during a final media conference at the G7 in Borgo Egnazia, near Bari in southern Italy, Saturday, June 15, 2024.  (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

The ECR party is a Eurosceptic party most closely affiliated with the right-wing parties of Italy: Brothers of Italy member Nicola Procaccini has served as chairman of the party since 2019, and the group made its biggest gains in France, Germany and Italy. 

The party is also closely associated with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has found herself as an archrival on the continental stage to French President Emmanuel Macron, who also faces a rising tide of right-wing opposition in his home country as Marine Le Pen and her National Rally party — renamed from National Front in 2018 after nearly five decades — seek gains in an upcoming snap election. 

FINDING COMPROMISE?

Macron called a snap election after National Rally took 31.4% of the vote for European Parliament, blowing away any other party, citing a concern that surging support for the party could hinder his remaining term and arguing that an election was the “most responsible solution,” France24 reported. 

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ECR describes itself as a “constructive center-right force,” according to Politico: The group also counts Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s party as part of its body, as well as Spain’s far-right Vox party. Romania added five new members to the group, proving once again that every win counts. 

French far-right Rassemblement National (RN) party President and lead MEP Jordan Bardella waits for the start of an interview on the evening news broadcast of French TV channel TF1, in Boulogne-Billancourt, outside Paris, on June 20, 2024.  (Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images)

One of the most prominent new faces on the rising right is Jordan Bardella, the president of National Rally, who has served as an MEP since 2019 and has taken a galvanizing role in French politics in the last few years, becoming the party’s “poster boy,” and he now finds himself poised to become prime minister should his party win the French elections set for July. (Note: France has both a President, Macron, who executes national and international policy and a prime minister who guides the parliamentary agenda and domestic policy.)

Bardella has already tried to show a more moderate temperament, turning away from his party’s 2022 promise to prioritize a departure from “the integrated NATO command,” instead insisting that such a move during wartime would “considerably weaken France’s responsibility on the European scene and, obviously, its credibility with regard to its allies.”

Von der Leyen herself hails from Germany’s Christian Democratic Union, the party of former Prime Minister Angela Merkel, but analysts have warned that if she should retain her role as president of the European Commission, she will need to try and balance the demands of both ends of the political spectrum if she wishes to find success. 

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Sandro Gozi, the leading MEP in Renew, told Politico that he doesn’t believe that ECR’s upswing at the expense of his own party will provide any kind of fundamental change to the parliament’s policies and approach, arguing that the “pro-European majority” in the left-wing parties will prove enough to keep things much the same. 

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report. 

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‘Brunello: The Gracious Visionary’ Trailer: Giuseppe Tornatore’s Documentary Shows the Rise of the King of Cashmere

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‘Brunello: The Gracious Visionary’ Trailer: Giuseppe Tornatore’s Documentary Shows the Rise of the King of Cashmere

“Brunello: The Gracious Visionary,” a documentary on fashion mogul Brunello Cucinelli from Oscar winner Giuseppe Tornatore, has released an official trailer ahead of its U.S. release.

The film, which combines interviews and archival footage with reenacted stories from Cucinelli’s life, documents the rise of the King of Cashmere. Starting out as the son of a farmer in Umbria, Italy, Cucinelli worked his way up in the fashion and business world to start a billion-dollar luxury clothing brand built on high-quality cashmere sweaters. Now beloved by celebrities and tech CEOs, Brunello Cucinelli has also come to represent something bigger: the philosophy of humanistic capitalism, which Cucinelli has embodied by placing the company’s headquarters in Solomeo, Italy and employing many of the town’s inhabitants.

“Blending documentary and fiction, ‘Brunello: The Gracious Visionary’ retraces the places and key moments of Brunello Cucinelli’s existential journey: from his childhood in the countryside to the village of Solomeo, which he transformed into a symbol of humanistic capitalism,” the film’s official synopsis reads. “Testimonies, archival footage and personal memories reveal a man who, from humble beginnings, built a world-renowned company while staying true to the values of dignity, beauty and social justice. The story concludes with the realization that dreams, when pursued with courage, are the true force guiding one’s destiny.”

In the reenactment portions of the documentary, Cucinelli is portrayed by “Love & Gelato” breakout Saul Nanni, who is also joined by Francesco Cannevale, Francesco Ferroni, Emma Fatone and Beatrice Carlani. Cucinelli produced the doc alongside Massimiliano Di Lodovico, and Blue Fox Entertainment will release the film in the U.S. and Canada on July 24.

Earlier this year, Variety took a trip to Solomeo to meet with Cucinelli and visit his headquarters, where employees are treated like family and overtime is forbidden. Much of his outlook on work came from his father’s experience working in factories after moving their family to Perugia.

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“He would never complain about his wages or the fact that it was cold in the factory; what he did complain about was that he was being belittled,” Cucinelli said. “That really killed me … You see, human beings need dignity even more than they need bread.”

Watch the trailer below.

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Bystanders hailed as ‘heroic’ after intervening in brutal knife attack by Sudanese migrant in UK

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Bystanders hailed as ‘heroic’ after intervening in brutal knife attack by Sudanese migrant in UK

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A man in his 40s was hospitalized with serious injuries after a brutal knife attack in Northern Ireland, as police arrested a Sudanese migrant on suspicion of attempted murder. 

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The attack happened shortly after 10:30 p.m. Monday in north Belfast, according to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The victim suffered serious injuries to his face, neck, back and eyes, while police said they recovered what they believe was a kitchen knife at the scene.

WAVE OF ALLEGED MIGRANT MURDERS IGNITES FURY ACROSS US AS OFFICIALS WARN OF MORE CARNAGE, CRACKDOWN NEEDED

Video circulating online appeared to show members of the public confronting the attacker, including one person wielding a hurling stick. PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson praised the bystanders as “heroic,” saying their intervention helped save the victim’s life, according to the BBC.

A Glider bus, set fire by protesters, on the Newtownards Road in east Belfast, as disorder flared during an anti-immigration demonstration organised in response to Monday night’s stabbing attack in the city. (PA via Reuters)

Police initially said the suspect was Somali but later corrected that he is believed to be Sudanese, describing the change as part of a “fast-time investigation.” Henderson said police understand the suspect came into Northern Ireland from Dublin, Ireland and had been granted leave to remain, though he said the Home Office would provide further clarity on his status.

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On Monday evening, protesters burned down a bus as tensions rose in Belfast following the gruesome stabbing, despite earlier calls from authorities for calm.

BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND – JUNE 09: Police attend the scene following a stabbing attack in North Belfast on June 09, 2026 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A knifeman has been arrested after a man was taken to hospital with serious injuries following a stabbing in north Belfast leaving the local community fearful. The incident has been condemned across the political parties offering praise to locals who intervened to stop the attack. (Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

“At this stage, we have no information to suggest that this was a terrorist-related incident,” Henderson said, while stressing that the investigation remains in its early stages. “However, I must stress, we are still at the early stages of our investigation,” he said, according to The Sun.

Alan Mendoza, executive director of the Henry Jackson Society, told Fox News Digital that the attack exposed what he described as failures in Britain’s immigration system.

“Britain’s broken border and migration system has been put into stark relief once more with this tragic — and entirely avoidable — case,” Mendoza said. “This man should never ever have been in the U.K., let alone been granted ‘leave to remain.’ The Irish border is the soft underbelly for a process the British public has long since lost confidence in, as well as in those administering it politically. Nothing short of a revolution in who we allow into the U.K. and how will satisfy a people fed up with false promises about immigration change.”

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ILLEGAL ALIEN MURDER SUSPECT AVOIDED SYSTEM AS ICE PUSHES DEM GOVERNOR TO KEEP HIM LOCKED UP

Police work at the scene of a stabbing on Kinnaird Avenue in north Belfast, Northern Ireland, on June 9, 2026. Northern Ireland police said Tuesday they had arrested a man following a “stabbing incident” in Belfast, with graphic online video prompting widespread condemnation and protest calls from UK far-right figures. The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said the arrested man was in his 30s, believed to be Somali, and had been detained on suspicion of attempted murder following the “serious assault involving a knife”. (Photo by Paul Faith / AFP via Getty Images)

The swift response from Prime Minister Keir Starmer marked a notable contrast with the case of Henry Nowak, an 18-year-old who was stabbed and then handcuffed by police after his attacker accused him of making racist remarks. Starmer faced criticism from some conservatives over his response to that case.

Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, during a news conference providing an update on the situation in the Middle East, at Downing Street in London, UK, on Thursday, March 5, 2026.  (Tolga Akmen/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Starmer quickly posted on X that the attack was “sickening,” adding: “I have absolutely no tolerance for abhorrent scenes of violence like this on our streets.” He said his thoughts were with the victim and thanked first responders, including members of the public who intervened.

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The attack prompted political reaction across the U.K. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called on authorities to reveal the suspect’s identity and immigration status.

“What happened in Belfast last night is horrific. The authorities must reveal the identity and status of the attacker immediately. The public are entitled to the truth,” Farage wrote on X.

FARAGE SLAMS SECRET AFGHAN REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT TO UK, CLAIMS SEX OFFENDERS AMONG ARRIVALS

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks during a press conference in Westminster, United Kingdom on June 10, 2025.  ( Thomas Krych/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Robert Jenrick also wrote on X: “We’ve woken up to truly barbaric footage on a street in Belfast. Of a kind you’d think you’d never see in this country. For years now I’ve urged the police to spell out the basic, sober facts, as they have them, when there are horrors like this.”

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Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said people would ask whether there had been “failings around our borders,” according to GB News.

Northern Ireland’s main political parties issued a joint statement condemning the violence and urging the public not to share graphic footage of the attack.

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“There is no place in our society for this kind of brutality. Our immediate thoughts are with the victim and his family, and we hope he makes a full and complete recovery,” the parties said, according to GB News.

Police said they had declared a critical incident and would increase their presence across Northern Ireland amid calls for protests. Officials urged calm and asked the public to allow the investigation to proceed.

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Canada confirms opening of Gordie Howe Bridge, despite Trump’s threats

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Canada confirms opening of Gordie Howe Bridge, despite Trump’s threats

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has confirmed that the Gordie Howe International Bridge — a new six-lane thoroughfare that will connect Detroit, Michigan, with Windsor, Ontario — will open by the end of the week.

The announcement comes despite threats to the contrary from United States President Donald Trump, who promised earlier this year that the bridge would not open without concessions from Canada.

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Speaking briefly to reporters on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Carney dodged questions about any behind-the-scenes negotiations with Trump. Instead, he focused on praising the bridge as a feat of cross-border collaboration.

“It’s positive news. Obviously, the bridge will be open at the end of the week,” Carney said, calling the bridge a “symbol but also a fact of cooperation between” the US and Canada.

“It’s great for Canadians going across the border, Americans coming across the border, and for commerce. And  I just want to salute those who constructed it on both sides, and looking forward to getting it done.”

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But the bridge’s fate was thrown into doubt in February, after Trump published a social media message framing the construction as a means of exploiting the US.

His remarks echoed criticisms raised by the Moroun family, who own the nearby Ambassador Bridge, another artery connecting the US and Canada.

The family has denounced the Gordie Howe Bridge as unfair competition, and it has sued to stop the project.

It also led an advertising campaign during Trump’s first term to kill the bridge, framing the structure as un-American.

The Gordie Howe Bridge will connect Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan [File: Paul Sancya/AP Photo]

Unlike the Ambassador Bridge, which is privately held, the Gordie Howe Bridge is slated to be co-owned by the governments of Canada and Michigan.

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In February’s social media post, however, Trump falsely depicted the construction project as a Canadian-only enterprise.

“Imagine, Canada is building a massive bridge between Ontario and Michigan. They own both the Canada and the United States side,” Trump wrote.

“Now, the Canadian Government expects me, as President of the United States, to PERMIT them to just ‘take advantage of America!’ What does the United States of America get — Absolutely NOTHING!”

Trump proceeded to threaten to block the completion of the bridge, which was in its final stages. He added that Canada should give the US government “at least one half of this asset”.

“I will not allow this bridge to open until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them, and also, importantly, Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we deserve,” Trump said.

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The threat caused yet another spike in US-Canada tensions. Since taking office for a second term, Trump has repeatedly berated Canada for what he calls unfair trade practices, and he has pressured the country to cede its sovereignty to the US.

That pressure continued into this month, with Trump reiterating his call for Canada to become the US’s “51st state” in a June 1 post on Truth Social.

FILE PHOTO: Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney gestures during a visit to the Ambassador Bridge linking Ontario with Michigan, as part of his Liberal Party election campaign tour, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada March 26, 2025. REUTERS/Blair Gable/File Photo
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney campaigns in front of the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario, on March 26, 2025 [File: Blair Gable/Reuters]

Traditionally, Canada and the US have had close relations, and their two economies are bound tightly together.

As of 2024, Canada was the largest destination for US exports. Trade between the two countries that year was estimated to top $909.1bn, according to the US government. And nearly half of Canada’s goods reportedly came from its southern neighbour.

But shortly after his second inauguration, Trump ignited a trade war by imposing steep tariffs on Canada, which he criticised for allegedly having a lax border policy. Canada responded with retaliatory tariffs, some of which have since been repealed — but others remain.

Trump’s far-reaching global tariff campaign has hit multiple setbacks in US courts, but his administration has continued to forge ahead, looking for different legal arguments to justify the import taxes.

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Most recently, the Trump administration has proposed using the Trade Act of 1974 to impose tariffs on 60 countries it accuses of relying on forced labour. Canada is among that number.

Carney has responded to the fraying relations between the US and Canada by calling for a coalition of “middle powers” to stand up to the “great powers” of the world.

Canada, Mexico and the US are currently in the middle of renegotiating a free trade agreement struck during Trump’s first term in 2020.

Before it became a political football, the Gordie Howe Bridge had been held up as a symbol of cross-border partnership.

The agreement to start the project was reached in 2012, and in 2017, Trump issued a joint statement with then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau saying he looked forward to its “expeditious completion”.

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The project has cost roughly $6.4bn, and the construction, which began in 2018, took roughly seven years.

Named for a celebrated Canadian hockey player who spent many years playing for the professional team in Detroit, the Gordie Howe Bridge is designed to ease supply chains, reduce traffic and increase trade between the US and Canada.

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