Croatia and Greece are governed by nominally conservative parties of the centre-right (Croatia: Croatian Democratic Community/HDZ; Greece: New Democracy/ND). The leaders of both parties (HDZ: PM Andrej Plenković; ND: PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis) have shifted the official party-narratives more firmly towards the centre. This corresponded to the programmatic expression of commitment to the process of European integration and the adoption of more 'humanitarian' stances on hot-button issues such as the migration crisis.
Nevertheless, both HDZ and ND comprise 'right-wing factions'. These are characterized by more socially conservative outlooks on policy-areas such as minority issues; LGBTQI rights, abortion, and other gender-related themes; relations between clergy and state; the management of the migration crisis; and the implementation of stricter 'law and order' agendas – coupled with the occasional communication of soft Eurosceptic standpoints.
Herein, attention is paid to the dynamics and the long-term implications behind these factions. Would these 'right-wing factions' be capable of prompting a shift of both parties further to the right? Or are their functions restricted to the accommodation of target-groups not fully covered by the official party-narratives?
