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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.

Zohran Mamdani’s Win and the Price of Urban Life: Why City Voters Are Seeking Change

Lynn Parramore

The soaring costs of city life appear to be sending urban voters toward progressive leaders who promise relief, both in the U.S. and globally.

Democracy’s Ratchet Effect: Why the Left and Centre Must Unite Against Rising Authoritarianism

Robert Misik

As emergencies mount and extremism feeds on paralysis, democratic forces need more than lowest-common-denominator coalitions to break the cycle of political decay.

Albania’s AI Minister Cannot Fix What Citizens No Longer Trust

Erjon Tase

Bold reforms and EU progress ring hollow when inequality deepens and Albanians choose to leave the country.

When Democracy and Liberalism Collide: America’s Governance Crisis

Marlies Murray

The United States is dismantling the very institutions designed to solve its problems—a paradox that reveals a deeper conflict between democratic will and liberal principles.

Europe’s Self-Inflicted Wound: The Corporate Responsibility Retreat

Guillaume Duval

By dismantling corporate sustainability rules, European businesses are handing competitive advantages to their foreign rivals.

Botswana’s Critical Transition: From Parental Provider to Democratic Enabler

Galaletsang Dintsi and Kabo Diamond Moseki

As diamond revenues collapse and public trust erodes, Botswana's new government attempts a fundamental reimagining of the state-citizen relationship.

Sovereignism: Europe’s Most Dangerous Political Plague

Jan Zielonka

The transnational crises of our era demand European solutions, yet national leaders cling to sovereignty games that leave citizens vulnerable and searching for scapegoats.

Europe’s Defence Dilemma: Why Fiscal Union Is No Longer Optional

Andris Šuvajevs

Without radical institutional reform, Europe cannot mount the defence it desperately needs against an increasingly aggressive Russia.

Europe’s Housing Crisis Threatens the Foundations of Democracy

Bartosz Rydlinski

Affordable homes built the post-war social contract—their absence today fuels political extremism.

Climate Refugees Are Already Here—And Democracy Hangs In The Balance

Neva Löw and Maximilian Pichl

As island nations sink beneath rising seas, the world faces a stark choice: build walls or build solidarity in the face of climate-driven displacement.

Europe’s Geothermal Moment: What Iceland’s Energy Revolution Teaches Us

Jóhann Páll Jóhannsson

Iceland transformed its heating system from oil to geothermal at a surprising speed—Europe should take note.

Portugal’s Democratic Paradox: How A Democracy Confronts The Crisis Of Trust

Fatima Fonseca

Fifty years after dictatorship, Portugal faces the challenge of rebuilding faith in democratic institutions while delivering on citizens' rising expectations.

Paradise Lost: New Zealand’s Crisis Of State And Identity

Grant Duncan

As economic stagnation meets constitutional discord, the remote archipelago faces fundamental questions about its future as a unified nation.

From Surveillance To Sedation: The Rise Of Blue Pill Capitalism

Henning Meyer

We are witnessing a disturbing evolution in digital capitalism—from harvesting our data to trapping us in fantasies that profit from our isolation.

Belgian Workers March Against Austerity As Government Targets The Most Vulnerable

Marie-Hélène Ska

Bold promises of sustainable jobs and increased purchasing power have evaporated into austerity measures that spare only the wealthy.

The “Deliveroo” Theory of Politics

Andrés Velasco

Populists win despite delivery: identity politics, grievance, and scapegoating trump economic performance and competence.

Keir Starmer Finds His Fighting Spirit: Labour’s Blueprint to Beat Back the Far Right

Paul Mason

With Reform surging ahead, Labour must win the narrative battle or face electoral oblivion by 2029.

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ETUI Advertisement

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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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
FEPS Advertisement

Read the book "The open future and its enemies" 

A robust democracy must not leave the future in the hands of the alliance between Big Tech and the far right. AI must be politically reined in and democratically shaped so that humanity retains its sovereignty.

Artificial intelligence is regarded as the driving force of progress. Yet it has long since become a challenge to democracy. The book argues that uncontrolled AI will erode our freedom, self-determination and democracy.

READ THE BOOK
Hans Böckler Stiftung Advertisement

WSI Minimum Wage Report 2026

Minimum wage policy across Europe has shifted significantly, with many EU countries raising wages above average and anchoring them to adequate living standards. This trend is consolidating as countries increasingly adopt the reference values recommended in the European Minimum Wage Directive — recently upheld by the European Court of Justice.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT
S&D Group in the European Parliament Advertisement

S&D Africa Days 2026

We are pleased to invite you to save the date for the S&D Africa Days 2026, taking place on 30 June and 1 July 2026, in Brussels. 

At a time when Africa is too often viewed through narrow and one-sided narratives, this initiative reflects a key political priority for the S&D Group: to advance a renewed, forward-looking partnership of equals between Europe and Africa based on equality, solidarity, social justice and shared progress. 

MORE INFO
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“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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