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process trace of the changes both internal and external to the party will be developed. By
outlining the process of political advancement, key explanatory variables will be
extracted and given detailed consideration. Preliminary analysis suggests the following
relationship:
Explanatory variables will be divided accordingly, with those external to the party
separated from those internal to the party. Internal factors involve people, structure and
dynamics within the political party itself. Examination of external factors requires a shift
in focus to the party system including the position of other parties on a Downsian
spectrum and the ideological space occupied by other parties compared to that left vacant
for opportunism by the far right parties (Downs 1957). In conclusion, speculation
regarding the prospects for continued advance or changing circumstances and decline
will be offered.
The Postwar Absence of Far Right Parties
Following World War II, the stigma of Nazism extended to the Vichy supporters
and offshoot social movements in France, discrediting far right ideology. Unfavorable
conditions precluded radical right-wing parties from forming and instead right-wing
sentiment found expression only in loose groupings and underground social movements.
The only viable activity on the fringe of the democratic political spectrum at this time
occurred on the far left wing with the ascendance of communism and radical socialists.
FN
party
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issue
Explaining Far Right Party Competitiveness in France
Convention