Irish, Czechs hold EU vote after Dutch far-right gains

Voters in Ireland and the Czech Republic go to the polls Friday on the second day of marathon EU elections, after the Netherlands kicked off the ballot with a strong showing by the far right.

The Freedom Party (PVV) of anti-immigration Dutch eurosceptic Geert Wilders was set for a major boost in the incoming European Parliament, after an exit poll put it in second place with seven seats.

That was expected to be just the first in a string of gains for far-right parties across the EU that surveys suggest will see them claim a quarter of the 720 seats up for grabs.

Most of the European Union's 27 nations — including powerhouses Germany and France — hold balloting on Sunday, with 370 million people eligible to vote overall.

The vote comes at a time of major geopolitical instability almost two and a half years into Russia's war on Ukraine, with warnings the Kremlin was targeting the elections with a disinformation campaign.

The far right is looking to tap into grievances among voters fatigued by a succession of crises over the past five years from the Covid pandemic to the fallout of Moscow's invasion.

The prospect of a lurch to the right has rattled the European Parliament's main groupings, the conservative European People's Party (EPP) and the leftist Socialists and Democrats.

They remain on course to be the two biggest blocs but current European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, who comes from the EPP, may need to glean support from part of the far right to secure a second term.

With an eye on the horse-trading that may be needed, the polyglot former German defense minister has been courting Italian premier Giorgia Meloni, who heads the post-fascist Brothers of Italy party.

French President Emmanuel...