At the beginning of the ХХІ century, the European Union, particularly its states parties faced a number of complex and unresolved issues. One of the important manifestations of political change that took place in some EU countries was the evolution of party systems. Due to the active globalization processes and the urgent problems facing Europe, it can be asserted that the European party system is currently degrading. Recently, during the years of crisis (economic, migration, political, etc.) there took place a rundown of political parties and a loss of parties’ influence on various local organizations, and most importantly on the electorate. A characteristic feature of the changes that took place in the established political configurations was a clear-cut disruption of party coordinates. The classic division into the right, the left and the centrists proves this. However, in reality it remained, basically, only in the ideological software of the parties. At the same time, the real political course of the party space’s main subjects became less and less conveyed. In truth, this character separates the leading political forces of modern Europe into two directions. Firstly, these parties proclaim to find a way out of the crisis by any means in their activities and at the same time improve the system of integration and globalization relations. In particular, in the scientific community (conservatives, liberals, etc.) they are called traditional parties. Secondly, there is another party side in which ideological and political criteria are expressed more explicitly. There are radical socialists who are dissatisfied with the current social structure of the (modern) state; radical nationalists who oppose the immigration component in modern European life; and separatists who excoriate EU regional strategy. All these points are actively supported by parties that have been defined as anti-systemic by the scientific community.
From convergence to congruence: European integration and citizen–elite congruence
