The Far-right Group of European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) has reorganized itself in the European Parliament, now boasting 84 members. This announcement was made on Wednesday in Brussels, positioning them as the third largest group, surpassing the Liberals who currently have 75 parliamentarians. The largest national delegations in the far-right group are the Brothers of Italy (Fratelli d’Italia, FdI) led by the Italian head of government Georgia Meloni with 24 MEPs, and the Polish opposition party Law and Justice (PiS) and its offshoot Sovereign Poland with 20 parliamentarians.
There were speculations that PiS could join the right-wing faction “Patriots for Europe”, as announced by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl. They have formed a pact with the eurosceptic ANO party of former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš. While Fidesz-Parteithe, FPÖ, and AGAIN have the required number of 23 MEPs to form a parliamentary group, they lack supporters from four other EU countries.
Other parties speculated to join the right-wing faction included: Enough-I’m Gone from Portugal, Lega from Italy, and Rassemblement National (RN) from France led by right-wing populist Marine Le Pen. The alliances and reorganizations within the European Parliament emphasize the shifting political landscape of Europe.