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Politics

Social Europe is an award-winning digital media publisher driven by the core values of freedom, sustainability, and equality. These principles guide our exploration of society’s most pressing challenges. This archive page curates Social Europe articles focused on political issues, offering a rich resource for innovative thinking and informed debate.

Donald Trump — author portrait, Social Europe.

The End of Progess? The Dire Consequences of Trump’s Return

Joseph Stiglitz

Trump’s second presidency could derail progress, dismantle Enlightenment values, and reshape global politics for the worse.

Cityscape within a human head, Social Europe.

Why Populists Are Winning: The Broken Promise of Liberal Democracy

Jan Zielonka

As democracy falters, voters turn to populists. Can innovation save democracy from its outdated frameworks?

Donald Trump — author portrait, Social Europe.

An American Catastrophe

Jan T. Gross

Trump’s second term will devastate democracy, erode global norms, and deepen the consequences of America’s collective folly.

Donald Trump — author portrait, Social Europe.

Populists Are Taking Over—Here’s Why Democracy Is Failing

Mark Blyth

Dissatisfied voters and outdated systems fuel populism’s rise. Can bold reforms restore trust in liberal democracy?

Man sitting on rocks, watching sunset over sea with ship in background.

A Changing Europe: Strategic Autonomy and Security in 2025 and Beyond

Almut Möller

Strategic autonomy, internal divisions, and external threats: Can the EU adapt and lead in an era of profound change?

London landmarks with European and UK flags overlay.

Britain’s Brexit reality check: Why the majority now want back in

Polly Toynbee

Every UK poll now shows a majority longing to rejoin the EU – but can Britain overcome its Brexit scars?

Man walking towards a map of Europe and the world, Social Europe.

Europe’s Challenge in a New Era of Shift and Shock

Brigid Laffan

The EU faces immense geopolitical and economic challenges in a multipolar world.

Elderly woman with a cane, sitting by a window, looking concerned.

Belgian workers against austerity and for social justice

Marie-Hélène Ska

Today, on 13th of January 2025, Belgian trade unions demonstrate in Brussels against austerity measures.

Elon Musk — author portrait, Social Europe.

Britain at a Crossroads: financial turmoil meets political threats

Paul Mason

Keir Starmer’s government finds itself on the frontline of a global power struggle.

Man in suit and glasses, mountains background, Social Europe.

Austria’s Far-Right Revival: How the ÖVP’s U-Turn is Paving the Way for Radical Leadership

Gabriela Greilinger

The Austrian far-right FPÖ’s likely return to government raises concerns about the erosion of liberal democracy.

Silhouettes of people on city buildings, social interaction theme.

The capacity to ‘compete’—rethinking the welfare state

Anton Hemerijck, Azizjon Bagadirov and Robin Wilson

Rather than a ‘burden on the taxpayer’, the welfare state should be understood in normative terms as productive social investment.

Donald Trump — author portrait, Social Europe.

What to expect from Trump 2.0?

Simon Johnson

Trump’s return promises bold rhetoric but faces stark economic and global challenges.

World map showing climate change impacts and rising sea levels.

Europe’s existential test: Navigating Putin, Trump, and the Global South

Guillaume Duval

How the EU must act to survive mounting global threats.

Portrait of a woman with dark hair — author portrait, Social Europe.

Why DOGE and Musk will fail

Laura Tyson

Elon Musk’s bid to “reinvent” government through Trump’s advisory DOGE commission will likely be a meme-worthy spectacle.

Protesters and debris around the US Capitol building, American flags in the background.

Why the centre-left has to remake democracy

Daron Acemoglu

Democrats must offer more than opposition—they need a bold vision for economic and political renewal.

Donald Trump — author portrait, Social Europe.

Progressives Under Pressure: Confronting the Gradual Rise of Authoritarianism

Robert Misik

Progressives face the urgent challenge of defending democracy without reinforcing the very divisions that fuel its decline.

Two silhouetted figures on a cliff with EU flag stars in the background.

The vanishing act of Social Europe: Will it rise again?

Dominic Afscharian

Grand promises of a “strong social Europe” have given way to a sidelined agenda.

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S&D conference The Middle East at crossroads: A progressive vision, 9 September 2026, European Parliament, Brussels

S&D conference “The Middle East at crossroads: A progressive vision”

The S&D Group is pleased to invite you to our conference “The Middle East at crossroads: A progressive vision” on Wednesday, 9 September, from 14:30 to 18:30, in the European Parliament in Brussels as well as online, where we will discuss the geopolitical changes taking place in the Middle East.

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Cover of the ETUI and OSE book Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2025.

New Edition - Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2025

Can Europe preserve its distinctive social model while simultaneously rearming, reindustrialising, and reorganising its economy in a more conflictual and competitive world? This is the central question raised in this new edition of the Bilan social, a reference publication released every spring for more than 25 years by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) and the European Social Observatory (OSE).

READ HERE

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EurofoundTalks podcast with Mary McCaughey and Eszter Sandor: Is financial resilience and trust in Europe faltering?

Is financial resilience and trust in Europe faltering?

In this episode of Eurofound Talks, host Mary McCaughey and senior researcher Eszter Sandor unpack the results of the 2025 Living and Working in the EU e-survey. While headline inflation has stabilised at 2.1%, the data reveals a continent gripped by chronic precariousness, with 57% of respondents now at risk of depression. Mary and Eszter explore how this economic insecurity is impacting institutional trust and democratic engagement.

LISTEN HERE

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Cover of The Progressive Post issue 31, Summer 2026: The Mediterranean, a crowded sea.

The Summer issue of The Progressive Post is out! 

The EU is belatedly awakening to a changing Mediterranean sea, where more assertive regional powers are reclaiming a role.

The new issue of the magazine also reflects on how we struggle to keep pace with AI innovations, examines the uncertainties surrounding the execution of the Pact on Migration and Asylum and the risk to human rights posed by the Return Regulation, and focuses on the EU Commission's newly proposed Industrial Accelerator Act.

READ THE MAGAZINE

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WSI blog series “Climate Transition: Socially Just and Fair”: How the climate crisis and global migration are linked, by Neva Löw and Maximilian Pichl

How the climate crisis and global migration are linked

The climate crisis and global migration are closely linked. Emancipatory forces must demand and defend the right to be able to leave, but not to have to leave. This means defending and expanding asylum rights.

READ HERE

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Cover of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung analysis The Capability State: A Progressive Vision for the 21st Century by Henning Meyer.

“What is the actual purpose of the state?” – this central question is the focus of the analysis. At a time when bureaucratic processes are making life difficult for citizens, the paper proposes a three-part model. It aims at a conception of the state as a platform that helps society build the capabilities it needs to address its problems effectively.

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