The paper bases its argumentation on the recent electoral success of one of the far-right parties in Greece—the NIKI party. This is a vivid example of the ideological mutation of far-right populism, which now includes religious fundamentalism as a significant part of its ideological vocabulary. Even though traditional far-right parties had long seen nationalism and anti-immigration policy as the primary mobilizing forces for their respective groups, NIKI is a shift towards the sacralization of political discourse as a mobilization tool.
This article critically considers the sociopolitical, psychological, and ideological dynamics that enabled the party's parliamentary breakthrough in 2023, particularly the intersection of far-right extremism with religious conservatism.
NIKI became a political force that carefully combined nationalist feelings with those of the Orthodox Christian fundamentalist group. The party seized on the growing polarization between secular modernity and conservative religious identity, portraying itself as the protector of Helleno-Christian civilization.
This ideological matrix enabled NIKI to attract voters who found mainstream political discourse antagonistic to their religious and national values, especially following Greece's economic crises. Economy vs. culture is the governing dynamic that explains NIKI's appeal. NIKI successfully reframed voter anxieties to reorient their base of support away from economic deprivation to existential threats to their Christian religious heritage and identity, facilitating the surge of far-right movements in the Eurozone.
NIKI's support base has been shaped by subjective insecurity and status anxiety. Much of its support is among demographics that see themselves as culturally marginalized — older voters, people from rural areas, and devout Orthodox Christians who believe that secularization, globalization, and progressive social policies are existential threats. Unlike typical far-right parties that arguably base their rhetoric around immigration, NIKI has framed its messaging around the idea that traditional Christian values are being undermined, positioning itself as the final firewall against moral and spiritual decay.
This dynamic represents a more significant movement in which far-right movements adopt religious dogma to enforce their ideological base and create political legitimacy. This trend is not only peculiar to Greece but shows similarities to the global trend towards far-right movements, particularly in Europe and USA.
These symbolic engagements reinforced a narrative of rightful divine sovereignty and moral leadership, drawing parallels in many respects to NIKI's narrative of being the guardian of the Orthodox status quo against perceived secular and globalist advances.
A pivotal moment for NIKI's ideological evolution came in March 2025, when a party MP vandalized works at Greece's National Gallery, denouncing the pieces as 'blasphemous' depictions of Orthodox Christian themes. This form of cultural aggression highlights how NIKI crosses the bounds of electoral politics to seek to enforce religious dogma in the public sphere openly.
The incident is an example of the increasing tendency of far-right movements to police cultural expression via religious fundamentalism, deepening the association of extremist ideology with theological absolutism.
This paper offers a broader perspective on how far-right parties use religion to keep their electoral momentum and affect governance and identity in their nations. It explains NIKI's rise considering cultural backlash, status anxiety, and the psychological appeal of religious populism and provides parallels with the US cases.
