The inauguration ceremony for an incoming president of the United States is an event that is typically attended by political figures from both the Democratic and Republican Parties, as well as other figures in government. As in many other things, President-elect Donald Trump has decided to break with tradition and invite foreign leaders as well, but they aren’t longstanding American allies such as Britain’s prime minister. Rather, Trump has sent invitations to several leaders of far-right, racist, and authoritarian political parties from around the world. Many have demonized Muslims, immigrants, and the LGBTQ+ community, or shown reverence for past fascist regimes. The choices illuminate who Trump views as important friends and allies abroad, and possibly point to what his foreign policy priorities may look like in the next four years.
Here are a few of the invitees:
Argentina: Javier Milei, the far-right president of Argentina, was among those who were invited to the ceremony. Milei is known for his bigotry against LGBTQ+ people and women, and has compared homosexuality to having sex with animals, and taken numerous efforts to oppose equality for women in the country (see GPAHE’s country report for Argentina here).
Belgium: Tom Van Grieken, the leader of the far-right Belgian party Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest, VB) was invited to the ceremony and plans to attend. The VB is a far-right party that calls for the separation of Flanders from Belgium, and has been opposed to multiculturalism since its founding in the late 1970s. The VB’s predecessor, the Vlaams Blok (Flemish Block), was dissolved by the state for espousing racism in a trial in 2004, and the current VB has been kept out of government due to an agreement by other parties not to form a government with them.
Brazil: Far-right former president of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro, also known as the “Trump of the Tropics,” was invited to the inauguration. It is unclear yet whether Bolsonaro will be able to attend because his passport has been confiscated as a part of the investigation into his alleged efforts to organize the Jan. 8, 2023, coup attempt following his election loss to President Lula de Silva (see GPAHE’s entry for Bolsonaro in the Brazil country report for here).
Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro in 2029. Source: Wikimedia Commons
El Salvador: The far-right El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has reportedly been invited by Trump to the ceremony. During Bukele’s presidency, El Salvador has been experiencing one of the country’s worst human rights crises since the 1980-1992 civil war. According to Amnesty International, almost 74,000 people in a crackdown on gang violence have been subjected to “systematic use of torture and other mistreatment.”
Donald Trump and Nayib Bukele in 2019. Source: Wikimedia Commons
European Union: The spokesperson for EU President Ursula von der Leyen stated that she had not received an invitation. Instead, Trump invited representatives from two of the European Union’s far-right groupings, the Patriots of Europe (PoE), led by authoritarian Hungarian President Viktor Orbán with members from his political party Fidesz, and the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group. Mateusz Morawiecki, the former Polish Prime Minister from the far-right Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice, PiS) political party and recently-chosen president of ECR will be present at the ceremony in his capacity as ECR leader alongside Orbán’s chief of staff Gergely Gulyás. Other members of PiS who were invited include the Polish President Andrzej Duda, who will not be present, and PiS MP Przemysław Czarnek, who will be. Both PiS and Fidesz are known for efforts to dismantle democratic institutions, and their advocacy of anti-LGBTQ+ and anti–immigrant positions.
India: While it is still not clear whether Trump specifically sent an invitation to the far-right president of India, Narendra Modi, the Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar from Modi’s political party will be in attendance. The BJP, or Indian People’s Party, is a far-right Hindu supremacist party, and is the political wing of the ever more extreme Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The RSS is a large far-right paramilitary organization founded with Nazi influence and admiration for the Third Reich that desires to segregate Muslims from the Hindu population. Since coming to power, Modi and the BJP have been responsible for eroding democratic institutions and unraveling the rights of minorities, particularly Muslims and Dalits.
Italy: Trump invited Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who leads the far-right political party Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy, FdI). The FdI is the modern-day successor of the neo-fascist Movimento Sociale Italiano (Italian Social Movement, MSI) and its members continue to have significant nostalgia for the former dictatorship. The party is extremely hostile to reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and immigrants (see Global Project Against Hate and Extremism’s (GPAHE) entry for the FdI in the Italy country report here).
France: Trump extended an invitation to the leaders of the most far-right political party, Reconquête (Reconquest, REC). REC head Eric Zemmour and REC MEP Sarah Knafo have been invited. In France, REC is known for being the main source of the white nationalist “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory in French public discourse, which falsely claims that political elites are secretly using non-white immigrants to “replace” the white population. Zemmour has pushed historically revisionist positions on the French Nazi puppet Pétain government, and expressed sympathy for Vladimir Putin. He has expressed extreme anti-woman and anti-LGBTQ+ views, and has been convicted of inciting racial hatred. Notably, French President Emmanuel Macron has not confirmed whether he was invited or not, and the leader of the slightly less extreme Rassemblement National (National Rally), Marine Le Pen, has yet to be invited, possibly demonstrating Trump’s intention to invite his most radical supporters abroad (see GPAHE’s entry for Reconquête in the France country report here).
Lithuania: Instead of inviting a representative of the current Lithuanian government led by Gintautas Paluckas, Trump invited Petras Gražulis, the head of the far-right party Tautos ir teisingumo sąjunga (People and Justice Union, TTS). Gražulis is known for having previously been impeached in 2023 for casting a vote in the name of another MP, rendering him ineligible for the parliament or presidency for ten years. Gražulis has also been charged with expressing contempt for members of the LGBTQ+ community after he referred in 2022 to LGBTQ+ activists as “degenerates” who spread STDs.
Netherlands: The leader of the far-right Dutch party Partij voor de Vrijheid (Party for Freedom, PVV) Geert Wilders was invited to the ceremony and has said he will be present. Wilders and the PVV are known for being one of the most anti-Muslim parties in Europe. Wilders has called the Koran a “fascist book” that should be banned like Mein Kampf. In 2016, he was convicted of insulting a racial group for chanting “fewer Moroccans” at a rally in March 2014. The conviction was upheld in 2021.
Portugal: While there are no reports that Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro has been invited to the event, Trump did invite André Ventura, leader of the far-right party Chega (Enough). Chega is known for white nationalist, anti-Muslim, and anti-LGBTQ+ positions, and regularly referencing a “Great Replacement,” as well as having members among their ranks who are white supremacists and neo-Nazis (See GPAHE’s entry for Chega in the Portugal country report here).
Spain: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will be represented by the Spanish ambassador at the inauguration. Trump also extended an invitation to the leader of the far-right VOX party Santiago Abascal. VOX is known for their anti-immigrant and anti-LGBTQ+ positions and nostalgia and fondness for the former fascist Franco dictatorship.
United Kingdom: British Prime Minister Kier Starmer was not invited to the inauguration and will be represented by the ambassador at the ceremony per custom, Trump did extend an invitation to far-right politician Nigel Farage from Reform UK, who is known for his instrumental role in pushing for Brexit and his anti–immigrant positions and his former close association with Elon Musk.
Donald Trump and Nigel Farage in 2019. Source: Wikimedia Commons
