The Rise of The AfD

 

The Alternative for Germany Party is seeing success in elections. The far-right political party does not have a majority in the state legislature. The AfD tends to have more support in the eastern states of Germany. The reason relates to economic disparities and the aftermath of the collapse of East Germany. The disdain for leftism or socialist ideas comes from memories of living under a Soviet supported state. Racism was a part of German history and did not disappear with the defeat of Nazi Germany. The migrant crisis was also a factor. The AfD emerged in 2013 during the early stages of the migrations from West Asia and Africa. The claim is that the AfD is pro-Russian, but what they desire is an end to the Russia-Ukraine War. The AfD still sees Eastern Europe and Russia in particular as lower. The new agenda to expand Germany's military demonstrates renewed hostility to Eastern Europe. Few political parties want to work with the AfD, but proposals have come form an unexpected place. The BSW, which is classified as left-wing could ally with the AfD. The traditional political labels do not matter when Germans are unified in racial hostility. The misnomer for this phenomenon is called populism, but the movement is xenophobic nativist nationalism. The reason political parties like the AfD are gaining momentum is due to the political establishment. Seen as oblivious to realities of the world and elitists voters in European countries are turning to far-right political parties. The Christian Democrats are facing possible losses in power. The AfD on its own is not formidable based on the election results. It could become a threat if it builds a large enough coalition to counter establishment political parties.