Latest polls suggest the Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) is expected to perform well in the upcoming German federal elections.
The controversial anti-immigration far-right party is a cause for concern for some, and optimism for others.
YouGov’s MRP poll suggests that the party will make the largest gains among all those running in the German Election, and finish second with 145 seats on 20% of the vote.
This would be roughly double the 10% the AfD won at the last election, and the best performance by a party to the right of the CDU/CSU in post-war Germany.
But Friedrich Merz, leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), is expected to come out on top and be appointed Chancellor after votes are counted. Yet, Germany’s proportional representation electoral system means a coalition between different parties is likely.
This opens the possibility of the AfD taking on a bigger role in German politics—a concept that clashes with the long-standing « firewall » put in place in Germany for years to keep far-right forces out of mainstream politics.
In January, the CDU relied on AfD votes to pass a non-binding motion Mr Merz’s party put forward to push for tougher immigration.
Amid backlash and critics claiming this move had handed a major win to the AfD, Mr Merz rebutted that the policy was not wrong just because the « wrong people back it ».
The favourite to become Germany’s next Chancellor said that he had not sought nor wanted AfD support.
Mr Merz has also emphasised that he would not work with the party should he be appointed Chancellor after the election on February 23, because « they are against… everything we are, what we build up in the Federal Republic of Germany », he told CNN.
What do you think? Should the AfD be allowed into government if it performs well in German elections?
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The CDU leader added: « There is no co-operation with this party. »
In a speech earlier this month, Mr Merz broached the topic again.
He said: “We will not work with the Alternative für Deutschland – not before [the election], not after – never. »
The AfD « stands against everything that our country and our party built in the last years and decades”, he added.
“It is our most important opponent in this election campaign. We want to make it small, we want to make it a footnote.”
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