Atlantic Sentinel

Tag: Alternative for Germany

  • Support for Anti-EU Parties Falls During Pandemic

    European flags Brussels
    Flags of the European Union outside the Berlaymont building in Brussels, July 22, 2016 (European Commission)

    If the coronavirus pandemic is giving Europeans doubts about the EU, it isn’t showing up in support for Euroskeptic parties. (more…)

  • Outrage over Right-Wing Alliance in Thuringia Is Overblown

    Politicians in Berlin are up in arms about an alliance between the mainstream right and far-right Alternative for Germany in the central state of Thuringia.

    Lars Klingbeil, secretary general of the ruling Social Democrats, spoke of a “low point in Germany’s postwar history.”

    Chancellor Angela Merkel called the election of a liberal state premier with far-right support “unforgivable”.

    Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the head of Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and presumptive successor, said it was a “bad day for Thuringia and a bad day for Germany.”

    Hitler comparisons are rife, coming even from party leaders in Brussels.

    This is all a little over the top. (more…)

  • Election Reveals Brexit- and Trump-Like Cleavages in Germany

    German parliament Berlin
    Reichstag in Berlin, Germany (Unsplash/Fionn Große)

    Germany’s federal election revealed many of the same cleavages we have seen in America, Britain and France, Alexander Roth and Guntram B. Wolff report for the Bruegel think tank:

    • Urban-rural split: Support for the far-right Alternative for Germany party was low in the cities but high in the countryside.
    • Old versus young: Districts with a higher share of elderly voters were more supportive of the Alternative.
    • Education: There is a strong correlation here. The better educated Germans are, the less likely they were to vote for the Alternative.
    • Income: Higher disposable household income is associated with lower support for the Alternative, however, areas with high unemployment were also less likely to vote for the far right. (more…)

  • Comparing German Party Platforms Reveals Two Divides

    David Cameron Angela Merkel
    British prime minister David Cameron and German chancellor Angela Merkel answer questions from reporters in Berlin, May 29, 2015 (10 Downing Street/Arron Hoare)

    Comparing the platforms of the six parties competing in the German election reveals two divides:

    1. The first is between the traditional left and right on spending and taxes. The Social Democrats, Greens and far-left Die Linke want higher taxes on the wealthy to fund public investment. The Christian Democrats, liberal Free Democrats and nativist Alternative argue for tax cuts.
    2. The second divide is between the four mainstream parties and the extremes on defense and foreign policy. The Christian Democrats, Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats all support closer European integration and NATO. The Alternative wants out of the euro. Die Linke would swap NATO for a security pact with Russia.

    Here is a closer look at where the parties stand on defense, Europe, immigration, spending and taxes. (more…)

  • Germany’s Alternative Succumbs to Infighting as Popularity Fades

    With five months to go before parliamentary elections, Germany’s nationalist party is imploding.

    Frauke Petry, the charismatic leader of the Alternative für Deutschland, has said she will not lead the election campaign in the fall, in effect conceding defeat in a long-running power struggle.

    Petry is officially one of two party leaders, but she sought to become its sole candidate for the chancellorship.

    Even if the Alternative would have stood little chance of prevailing in September’s election anyway, a role as Spitzenkandidat could have given Petry more influence.

    Her opponents argued for a team of leading contenders representing the various tendencies in the party. (more…)