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All the latest on right-wing extremism: articles, analysis and ongoing coverage from Lost in the Jungle.
World
Far-right leaders have intensified calls to expel migrants who remain in Ceuta, according to The New York Times. Anti-immigration activists were also due to hold a rally in the Spanish territory to demand tougher measures. The mobilisation follows the arrival of thousands of migrants in the Spanish exclave last week.
World
Leif-Erik Holm, 55, will lead the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) into the state election in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. According to Handelsblatt, the party is polling at 36%, compared with 29% for the SPD of incumbent state premier Manuela Schwesig. The vote is scheduled for two weeks after Saxony-Anhalt’s election on September 6, 2026. Holm is considering either an AfD-only government or a coalition with the CDU. However, regional CDU leader Daniel Peters and the federal chancellor categorically rule out cooperation with the AfD.
World
A YouGov poll commissioned by Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) and published on July 26, 2026, shows that 47% of East Germans support the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) participating in a coalition government in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Support drops to 37% among West Germans. Regional elections are scheduled for September in these two states, with polls indicating strong gains for the AfD. The survey reveals a marked divide between East and West German opinion on the question.
World
Flavio Bolsonaro, 45-year-old senator and eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, formally declared his candidacy for Brazil's October 2026 presidential election on July 25, 2026, at a Liberal Party convention in São Paulo. A Datafolha poll published July 24, 2026, shows incumbent President Lula leading with 48% voter support compared to 43% for Flavio. The candidacy faces significant challenges: a Supreme Court investigation into controversial film financing, a recently resolved family rift, and a court-imposed ban on visiting his father, who is under house arrest.
World
For the first time, the AfD party leads polls for Berlin's regional parliament elections with 19% of voting intentions according to a survey published on July 24, 2026. The CDU and Die Linke — "The Left," a German political party founded on June 15, 2007 — follow in equal second place with 18% each. The electoral vote takes place in less than two months. Despite this result, forming a government coalition remains described as difficult for the AfD in Germany's capital.
World
Andy Burnham, former mayor of Greater Manchester, announced his candidacy for British Labour Party leadership, aiming to become Prime Minister. His candidacy follows Keir Starmer's resignation after less than two years in office, during which Labour lost constituencies to Reform UK, the far-right party led by Nigel Farage. Burnham advocates for stronger devolution of power to regions and measures to tackle the high cost of living. The EU is considering reforms to its carbon market emissions system, balancing industrial concerns against climate objectives.
World
The satirical play "Timmy: Hope Dies Last" premiered on July 12, 2026, at Ernst Deutsch Theater in Hamburg. Directed by Alexander Klessinger, it reimagines the controversial rescue of a female humpback whale that beached near Timmendorf on the Baltic Sea coast in March 2026. The one-hour production reinterprets the April 2026 rescue effort—funded by two millionaires against scientific expert advice—as an inverted passion play, where the whale is worshipped and then dissected. Der Spiegel praised the production; Catholic theologians criticized it. The play explicitly links populist fervor around Timmy to the electoral rise of Germany's far-right AfD party.
World
On July 15, 2026, the U.S. State Department announced a grants program offering up to $3 million per award to European organizations and individuals aligned with the MAGA movement. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned against American interference in Germany's regional elections scheduled for September 2026. The program is administered by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL), an agency originally founded under President Carter to promote democracy and human rights, now redirected by the Trump administration. Former U.S. officials describe the initiative as an effort to give far-right European groups an "unfair advantage."