The anti-mass immigration populist Alternative for Germany party was the most popular among young voters in Sunday's local elections, with analysis showing that establishment warnings about the rise of the so-called “far right” are being ignored by many self-described “centrist” young people.
Local elections in two eastern German states over the weekend saw young voters rally to the right-wing populist AfD party, which won its first major election victory in Thuringia and came a close second in neighbouring Saxony.
According to an analysis by the Election Research Group, 36% of voters aged 18 to 29 in Thuringia support Alternative for Germany, by far the most of any party and 11% more than in the last elections in 2019, NTV reported. Reports.
By comparison, the centre-right neoliberal Christian Democrats (CDU) and the Left Party came in joint second in Thuringia with 13 percent.
Meanwhile, in Saxony, 30% of young voters support the AfD, nine percentage points higher than in the last election five years ago. The CDU, the party that first “opened the door” to mass immigration under former Chancellor Angela Merkel, comes in a distant second among 18-29 year-olds with 15%.
The results confirm a growing tendency among young people to support anti-mass immigration parties. investigation In April, the AfD became the first choice for Germans aged 14 to 29 nationwide.
German election: Populist right-wing AfD wins state elections for first time, but rainbow coalition may block path to governmenthttps://t.co/rNPS0hjEk2
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German political psychologist Rüdiger Maas said that for many young voters, even those who consider themselves politically moderate, the Alternative for Germany was “not immediately perceived as right-wing extremism”.
“A lot of young people have told us: 'Right-wing extremists won't do anything to us, they're not bad people.' Older people in particular seem to be aware of this danger, which is completely underestimated,” he added.
Maas said traditional political divisions between left and right are becoming less important to younger voters, so “these extreme parties aren't going to slide to the fringes.”
The researchers also noted that the AfD's populist party appears to be more successful on social media than established parties such as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats, who suffered humiliating results in the states of Thuringia and Saxony, where their ruling party's approval rating only reached single digits.
Elsewhere in Europe, populists have had success mobilizing young voters through social networks: In France, Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old leader of the National Rally party, used apps such as TikTok to successfully campaign for his party in June's European elections, in which Le Pen's party won so overwhelmingly that President Macron immediately dissolved the European Parliament and called for early general elections.
Similarly, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has also successfully used TikTok to reach an audience, with British commentators Warned Left-wing Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's plans to extend the voting right to 16-year-olds could actually backfire in Farage's favour, given his growing popularity among young people.
Farage hails Zoomer surge as young people flock to the right https://t.co/276t7BV0wV
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One of the main reasons why young people in Europe are voting for more populist parties is a backlash against the mass immigration policies imposed on their countries by more liberal-leaning older generations.
The influx of millions of foreigners into countries like France, the UK and Germany is perhaps felt most by young locals, putting downward pressure on entry-level wages while also putting upward pressure on home prices, which often provide a boon for older landowners but a major obstacle for younger people looking to buy property.
The AfD has been a leading voice in opposition to Berlin's political elite's policies of mass immigration, but there is growing realization among establishment figures that the open borders policy must end, especially following deadly Islamist terrorist attacks in May at diversity festivals in Solingen and Mannheim (both reportedly perpetrated by Muslim immigrants).
Speaking at a ceremony Sunday commemorating the victims of the Solingen attack, in which three people were killed and eight injured in a mass stabbing, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier acknowledged that a “nationwide effort” was needed to enforce existing immigration laws and pass new restrictions on asylum seekers to protect the country's national identity — an idea previously expressed only by the AfD.
“We want to stay in this country” – Steinmeier said About 450 mourners gathered Sunday. “And we can finally have this country if we're not overwhelmed by the numbers of people who don't deserve this special protection,” he said. [refugee status].”
Germany mass stabbing suspect ordered to leave country but not deported, reports sayhttps://t.co/cPhspj46nh
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) August 25, 2024
