The recent passage of same-sex marriage legislation in Greece sparked intense opposition from the far-right populist party NIKI, which framed the reform as a catastrophic rupture with Greek national and spiritual identity. However, this was more than a simple ideological disagreement; it was a carefully constructed moral panic, a textbook case of how far-right actors strategically mobilize antigenderism to further reactionary and exclusionary agendas. By presenting LGBTQ+ rights as an existential threat, NIKI does not merely oppose progressive social policies—it weaponizes gender and sexuality as political tools to frame itself as the last bastion of national and cultural defense. This paper explores why a relatively small far-right and populist party has invested so heavily in opposing LGBTQ+ rights and how this opposition fits into a broader ideological project. NIKI’s stance is not just about preserving so-called traditional values but about redefining national belonging through exclusion. By framing gender and sexuality as key battlefronts, NIKI constructs a narrative in which Greek identity is under siege, threatened by an intrusive liberal order that seeks to erase Orthodox Christian traditions. This discourse is central to far-right populist mobilization, transforming social issues into moral panics that rally support and solidify reactionary political agendas. One of the most striking features of NIKI’s antigender rhetoric is its paradoxical use of femonationalism. Like other far-right movements in Europe, NIKI selectively invokes women’s and children’s rights, not in the service of gender equality, but as a pretext for reinforcing exclusion. By claiming to “protect” the traditional family, NIKI constructs a moral hierarchy where LGBTQ+ rights are portrayed as a foreign imposition that threatens the social fabric. This strategy mirrors broader trends across the European far right, where antigenderism is not just a cultural stance but a powerful political tool. The party draws heavily on Orthodox Christian revivalism, anti-Western resentment, and nationalist nostalgia, tapping into long-standing anxieties about external influence and cultural dilution. In doing so, it transforms gender and sexuality into markers of civilizational struggle, reinforcing the idea that defending traditional values is inseparable from defending the Greek nation itself. This study employs discourse analysis to examine how NIKI constructs LGBTQ+ rights as an existential threat and why this strategy resonates with its supporters. By situating this case within broader European trends, it demonstrates that far-right attacks on gender equality are not isolated incidents but part of a systematic effort to reshape democracy itself. The weaponization of gender politics is not merely about conservatism; it is a deliberate strategy to redraw the boundaries of political inclusion and exclusion. Ultimately, this case study challenges us to rethink gender as not just a contested space within far-right ideology but as a foundational pillar of exclusionary nationalism. Understanding NIKI’s role in this process is key to decoding the future of radical-right mobilization in Greece and beyond—and to countering the growing entrenchment of antigenderism as a central tenet of far-right politics.
