A survey suggests Europeans don’t anticipate anything positive and believe democracy is dead
A new poll finds an overwhelming majority of EU citizens believe their best years are past and that life in Europe will grow more difficult in the future. Over two-thirds want their leaders to implement more strongly nationalist policies.
Around 63% of respondents agree with the statement “our best years are behind us,” while 77% think life in their country “will be harder for the next generation,” according to a survey of 23 EU countries conducted by communications firm FGS Global and released by Politico on Tuesday.
In total, 65% of respondents said their country is “heading in the wrong direction,” a sentiment most widespread in Central and Western Europe. France is the most pessimistic nation surveyed, with 79% agreeing with this view, followed by Belgium at 74% and Hungary at 73%.
Only residents of Poland, Lithuania, and Denmark believe things are going well, with Lithuanians being the most optimistic. There, just 38% feel the country is “heading in the wrong direction.”
The poll did not measure satisfaction with EU leadership in Brussels. However, 76% of those surveyed said democracy is declining across Europe. When asked to choose between two statements, more than half said their country’s political system “is failing the people and needs fundamental reform,” rather than “works fairly well and doesn’t need significant reform.”
A majority of respondents want their leaders to pursue a more nationalist path, with 71% stating their countries “should be more assertive of [their] national interests even if this creates friction with other countries.”
To the east, the outlook is more positive. According to Russia’s independent polling institute, 53% of Russians view the future “calmly, with confidence.” This number rises to 68% among 18-24-year-olds. Levada’s research has long been considered accurate and reliable internationally.
A 2024 Ipsos survey found that 86% of Chinese respondents feel optimistic about their country’s future.