On Sunday, Germany took a big step to the right.
The conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) have launched a campaign focused on law, order and suspension of immigration. And Prime Minister Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD) overtook the largest party of hosts with 28.6% of votes.
The far-right figures around the world were even more ecstatic that the nationalist alternative Fut Deutscheland (AFD) became the second most powerful force, earning 20.8% support. This is a height that has not been achieved by the German far-right party since the Nazi era. Congratulations to Hungary’s Victor Orban, Matteo Salvini and Elon Musk of Italy.
All the parties to the previous governing coalition were hits. The SPD fell nearly 10 points to 16.4%, with the Green sliding to 11.6%, and the neoliberal Liberal Democrats (FDP) completely dropped out of Congress and missed the 5% threshold.
Sunday’s election took place about six months earlier than expected after Prime Minister Scholz fired Christian Lindner, the head of his FDP coalition partner. Inevitable outcome: Scholz lost his lack of confidence in voting, causing these early elections.
The campaign period was dominated by intense immigration debate, inflammatory with the cooperation of the CDU and AFD in passing two terrorist attacks and Congressional motions on suppressing immigration. This weakening of the already uncertain “firewall” that is non-operational and uncertain with the AFD has led to protests and widespread criticism of CDU leader Friedrich Merz.
In this rather tragic context, the prospect of the Socialist Party’s death has initially begun to move in a better direction. This last final burst of dissatisfaction between the “anti-fascist” energy and the left has decided not only to stay in Congress, but also to give Die the boost he needs to achieve 8.8% of the vote. It was targeted.
This was the party’s third best result – even more noteworthy as the last Dai Linke in 2021 hadn’t reached the 5% threshold (MPS thanks to loopholes based on locals hanging in a small group of people – level constituencies).
This time, it appears that the parliamentary group is strong at least 60 people, with six directly elected candidates, including the first MP in the working-class and multicultural Newkorn district. The candidate there was the Ferat Cossack, a lifelong anti-racist and one of Palestine’s most outspoken parties. Die Linke scored particularly among first-time voters, earning 27% for this group.
Die Linke is unquestionable from the form of strategic voting among young, progressive voters who view Mertz as the only party that will never join Mertz’s increasingly right-wing coalition with CDU. Both Green and SPD may do that now.
For most of the January campaign period, Die Linke voted mainly in the 5% risk zone. But that number began to pick up quickly, especially after a viral video of party chief candidate Heidi Raichinnek, who gave a speech denounced Mertz’s decision to vote alongside the AFD. She is already one of the party’s most social media savvy figures, and the video picked her out as a clear leftist voice for collaboration with the far-right party.
But it wasn’t all social media or luck. The party’s campaign predicted a consistent and competent political image. Die Linke focused on reducing the basic costs of affordable rent, social housing, and food and public transport.
Leading alongside Raichinnek was certain of a new face of party leadership: Ines Schwerdner (formerly the editor-in-chief of German Jakobin) and Jan van Eken. Everything is relatively new to top party positions. Van Aken and Schwerdtner were only elected to the party’s koreada in October, and it was expected that there would be almost a year to prepare for the original election day. Die Linke wanted to rely on an active young member base to spend the whole summer on door knock campaigns. This is a tactic that is usually used sparingly in Germany.
Schwerdtner overdrive the strategy with a campaign over a direct-elected seat in Berlin, Lichtenberg, with Reichinnek and Van Aken visiting districts around the country. They emphasized continuity and compiled media campaigns that highlighted the stubbornness of popular old parties like Thuringia’s Bodo Ramelow (who voted constantly for the state’s most popular politician) and Gregor Gysi. It was done. A familiar and old face, Gysi was a leading media figure in the party in the 2000s. This was when the reformed former ruling East Germany party merged with the leftist division with the Social Democrats to form Dai Riquet.
Earning 8.8% was not a shrug and the results were high, so the spirit was high.
The “confrontational” division of Sahara Waigenknecht in late 2023 appears to have allowed Dai Linke to act as a left-wing flank, without embarrassment, of what the Germans call the “red green” bloc. Meanwhile, Wagenknecht’s own party (Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, BSW) was unable to reach the threshold for entering Parliament, shortening around 13,000 votes. Statistics about who did Their votes show that they are getting votes from the SPD, not from former AFD voters.
The decline in BSW’s performance appears to depend primarily on Turingism and the results of last fall elections in Brandenburg’s eastern province. So it explicitly campaigned as an alternative to the establishment’s parties. However, when the votes were in, BSW chose to join the Social Democrats in Brandenburg and join the large coalition. both Thuringia CDUs and SPDs. It’s hard to imagine a more business outcome.
Besides cornering left-wing voters, Schwerdner highlights the need for Die Linke, especially to build a massive amount of appeal. Among working class voters. The post-election poll breakdown suggests that self-identified manual workers voted for the party at the same rate as the average (8%). However, AFD was far ahead of this category. 38%. If this group is not the entire working class, it is a disturbing person and a call to action.
Dai Linke welcomes something like victory, but the far right is ecstatic at the best results ever, and German political discourse is that a conservatively led government lays eggs due to strong far-right opposition. It looks increasingly troublesome. In this connection, the voice of the opposition of Dai Linke is essential. There is no doubt that we will continue to protect our firewall against AFD. But when it comes to ralling a wider base and winning enough support to be considered an actual mass party, Die Linke’s fresh start is actually just a start.
