In Norway, youth fuel the rise of the populist right. September 10, 2025

Norway held a general election on Monday (Gorm Kallestad).

By AFP - Agence France Presse

In Norway, youth fuel rise of populist right

Pierre-Henry DESHAYES

Norway's populist right, which saw a historic rise in the country's general election, has managed to rally young men, who are drawn to its anti-tax, anti-elite, and anti-immigration message, largely through social media.

While the country's left-wing parties emerged victorious in Monday's election, allowing Labour Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store to remain in power, the Progress Party achieved its best performance since its founding in 1973.

It secured nearly a quarter of the votes (23.9 percent), becoming the country's second-largest party and, for the first time, the main opposition force.

"Tonight, we will celebrate the best result of all time, and my goal is for this to be just the beginning," party leader Sylvi Listhaug told her jubilant supporters on election night.

Many of those supporters are young people.

According to a poll by public broadcaster NRK, the Progress Party is now the leading party among men under 30, reflecting a trend observed in a growing number of European countries.

Jonas Stein, a professor of political science at Tromso University, told AFP there was "a combination of factors" at play.

"There's the economy -- these are individuals who want to keep a higher share of what they earn and have the opportunity to become wealthier -- and a form of protest against egalitarianism and some progressive forces," Stein said.

In a country where taxation is among the highest in Europe, the Progress Party is pushing for deep cuts.

Its political manifesto is calling for the abolition of the wealth tax, which has prompted several dozen of the country's ultra-rich individuals to emigrate in recent years.

"We see that some Norwegians who are creating a lot of jobs and successful businessmen are moving to Switzerland or Sweden, and this is not sustainable for Norway," Listhaug told AFP.

At the same time, the party wants to save money by reducing government red tape, development aid, green subsidies, and immigration.

A 19-year-old first-time voter, who wished to remain anonymous, told AFP he voted for the Progress Party because "everyone should be able to keep more of their own money and choose the social benefits that suit them".

"For me, it's mainly an issue of the economy and taxes, but crime is also a concern," the man who runs his own investment company explained.

He added that the party's plans to increase police budgets and introduce stricter immigration policies were also important "because I feel integration isn't working very well right now".

- 'More polarisation' -

The Progress Party's youth league and its leader, Simen Velle, were extremely active on social media, where younger people find information, during the campaign.

On TikTok, the slogan "Vote Progress Party!" spread like wildfire.

As a result, the party overwhelmingly won the "skolevalg" (school election), where high schools simulate elections, gaining 26 percent of the vote.

The party has been difficult to classify.

Political scientist Johannes Bergh told AFP it can be described as a "right-wing populist party" that is anti-elitist and anti-immigration.

However, compared to parties in the same category around Europe, such as the Sweden Democrats or France's National Rally, "the Progress Party is more moderate and much more of an established party in Norway", he said.

Bergh added that "it doesn't cross over into racism".

In fact, it has already been part of a coalition government together with Norway's Conservative Party between 2013 and 2020.

Listhaug, who was a member of the government at the time, made waves during the 2015 migration crisis by denouncing "the tyranny of kindness" and claiming foreigners "cannot be carried into Norway on a silver platter".

Today, the 47-year-old leader rejects any affiliation with other European parties, instead describing the Progress Party as "a liberal party that wants more freedom, less taxes, less government, but we also want a strict immigration policy".

The Scandinavian country's political scene is distinguished by a culture of compromise, and the rise of the Progress Party could lead to "more polarisation", according to Stein.

"Never before have Norway's two main parties been so far apart," he said.

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