Sarah de Lange (born 1981 in Middelburg) is a Dutch political scientist who has spent more than two decades studying the radical right, far-right extremism and populism in Western Europe. She earned her PhD at the University of Antwerp under Cas Mudde and then spent seventeen years at the University of Amsterdam, where she held the Den Uyl chair in Political Pluralism. Since October 2025 she has been professor of Dutch Politics at Leiden University, researching the rise of the far right and the pressures on liberal democracy. She is a frequently consulted media commentator and public speaker on the lasting impact of radical-right parties on European politics.
De Lange participated in a round-table discussion in the Second Chamber about the state of the rule of law and pointed out the role of civil society organizations, such as sports clubs, in learning to deal with democratic rules.
She gave a public lecture during Nachtuilen: Night of Philosophy in Middelburg about the political future of Generation Z.
Together with other political scientists, she analyzed the major seat gains of Forum voor Democratie in the municipal council elections of March 2026.
She left after seventeen years at the University of Amsterdam and became professor of Dutch Politics at Leiden University.
She became the target of an orchestrated online hate campaign by the far-right platform Vizier op Links, which led to an action plan by the universities against such campaigns.
