Europe's swing to the right continues: How Geert Wilders' sweeping victory in the Netherlands is just the latest example of the continent turning to 'populist' parties to tackle social issues

 

• Geert Wilders' Party For Freedom took 37 seats in yesterday's election
• It was the latest hard-right party to win power in Europe
• MailOnline looks at the rise of the far-right across the continent

 

Far-right populist Geert Wilders won a 'monster victory' in the Netherlands' general election yesterday that has shaken the nation and the rest of Europe. 

 

The 60-year-old politician heads up the right-wing Party for Freedom (PVV), which ran on an anti-immigration and anti-Islam platform, took 37 seats in the election, more than any other party. 

 

The result, which more than doubled his party's previous share, puts the anti-immigration politician, who has been described as the 'Dutch Trump', in a favourable position for upcoming coalition talks with the roughly half-dozen other parties that hold a significant number of seats. 

 But he has alienated almost all of the other political parties in the Netherlands with his harsh anti-immigration rhetoric. 

 

While Wilders faces an uphill battle as he tried to woo other Dutch parties in an attempt to form a government and become the Netherlands' first hard-right leader, his surprise success is the latest in a string of political upsets that have seen far-right parties take significant power across Europe in recent years. 

 

Here, MailOnline takes a look at the far-right's meteoric rise in Europe over the last few years. 

Read More Here: Daily Mail