Far-right firebrand Hoecke draws crowds in eastern Germany
Sonneberg (Germany) (AFP) – German far-right politician Bjoern Hoecke has caused outrage with his inflammatory Nazi rhetoric, but the controversy has not deterred his supporters in the eastern town of Sonneberg.
Issued on: 22/08/2024 -
Bjoern Hoecke, the leader of the far-right AfD in the German state of Thuringia, has caused outrage with his controversial views © Clement KASSER / AFP/FileAdvertising
Hoecke was greeted with rapturous applause as he appeared at a rally to drum up support for the far-right AfD in the town this month ahead of a key regional election.
Hoecke, 52, a former history teacher, is the head of the AfD in Thuringia, one of three former East German states going to the polls in September.
The location of the rally was calculated -- the AfD caused a sensation in Sonneberg last year when it secured its first district administrator position there in all of Germany.
Now, the party is hoping to win a state election for the first time -- and with polls putting it in the lead on around 30 percent, that goal looks well within reach.
Hoecke was fined twice this year for using a banned Nazi slogan and has previously caused controversy with statements such as calling Berlin's Holocaust monument a "memorial of shame".
But he did not hold back as he addressed a crowd of around 200 people in Sonneberg, decrying how Thuringia had become "a magnet for migrants" and accusing the opposition of "fascist methods".
'Remigration'
In the front row, a 19-year-old plastics industry worker who gave his name only as Kemi was wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the words "Hoecke for chancellor".
"His speech is very informative and he has the right vision for Germany," he said, adding that there were "too many misunderstandings about him."
"Everyone has the right to express their opinion in Germany," said Diana Werner, a 50-year-old care worker.
She will be voting for the AfD because she wants to see "a major change in this country", especially through "remigration".
The far-right AfD enjoys broad support in the eastern German town of Sonneberg © Clement KASSER / AFP/File
AfD members were accused earlier this year of discussing the concept of remigration -- the expulsion of immigrants and "non-assimilated citizens" -- at a meeting with extremists.
The AfD officially rejects the concept.
But in Sonneberg, Hoecke promised the crowd "a major programme to deport illegal immigrants" if he is elected.
"I think there are too many people who come here and commit too many crimes," said Werner.
In a subtle nod to the AfD's stance on the issue, party members at the rally were handing out blue inflatable planes for children to play with.
Hoecke's promise of a 10,000-euro ($11,000) bonus for every baby born in Thuringia and his criticism of environmentalists also drew enthusiastic cheers from the crowd.
An AfD victory in Thuringia would make Hoecke and his radical ideas even more "inescapable" within the party, according to Julia Reuschenbach, a political scientist at the Free University of Berlin.
- Far-right 'hotspot' -
Around the corner from the rally in Sonneberg, around 100 protesters were kept apart from the AfD supporters by police.
"What would happen to our healthcare system without all those (foreigners) who provide invaluable help?" said Claudia Mueller, 74, who suffers from polio.
AfD members were accused earlier this year of discussing the concept of remigration -- the expulsion of immigrants and "non-assimilated citizens" -- at a meeting with extremists.
The AfD officially rejects the concept.
But in Sonneberg, Hoecke promised the crowd "a major programme to deport illegal immigrants" if he is elected.
"I think there are too many people who come here and commit too many crimes," said Werner.
In a subtle nod to the AfD's stance on the issue, party members at the rally were handing out blue inflatable planes for children to play with.
Hoecke's promise of a 10,000-euro ($11,000) bonus for every baby born in Thuringia and his criticism of environmentalists also drew enthusiastic cheers from the crowd.
An AfD victory in Thuringia would make Hoecke and his radical ideas even more "inescapable" within the party, according to Julia Reuschenbach, a political scientist at the Free University of Berlin.
- Far-right 'hotspot' -
Around the corner from the rally in Sonneberg, around 100 protesters were kept apart from the AfD supporters by police.
"What would happen to our healthcare system without all those (foreigners) who provide invaluable help?" said Claudia Mueller, 74, who suffers from polio.
Bjoern Hoecke (left) is hoping for electoral success at a key regional poll in September © Martin Schutt / dpa/AFP/File
Sonneberg has become a "hotspot" for far-right violence since the AfD took control of the town in 2023, according to Ezra, a local counselling service for attack victims.
"Verbal violence has increased here, with people daring to say more things about immigration or the government," said Georg Litty, a 50-year-old social worker.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) look set for an electoral disaster in Thuringia where they are currently polling at around six percent.
At a recent rally for the SPD, Scholz said Hoecke "talks like a Nazi".
"Let them govern, and then we can get angry if they cheat us like the old parties," said Markus, a 58-year-old lorry driver.
The AfD is unlikely to come to power in Thuringia, even if it wins the election, as other parties have ruled out teaming up with it to form a majority.
But it would not be the first time the state has blazed a far-right trail: the Nazi party first came to power in Thuringia, in a coalition with the conservatives in 1930.
© 2024 AFP
Sonneberg has become a "hotspot" for far-right violence since the AfD took control of the town in 2023, according to Ezra, a local counselling service for attack victims.
"Verbal violence has increased here, with people daring to say more things about immigration or the government," said Georg Litty, a 50-year-old social worker.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) look set for an electoral disaster in Thuringia where they are currently polling at around six percent.
At a recent rally for the SPD, Scholz said Hoecke "talks like a Nazi".
"Let them govern, and then we can get angry if they cheat us like the old parties," said Markus, a 58-year-old lorry driver.
The AfD is unlikely to come to power in Thuringia, even if it wins the election, as other parties have ruled out teaming up with it to form a majority.
But it would not be the first time the state has blazed a far-right trail: the Nazi party first came to power in Thuringia, in a coalition with the conservatives in 1930.
© 2024 AFP
CULT OF PERSONALITY
DW
August 23, 2024
Polls in eastern Germany show that the new Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) is gaining momentum. While some of its positions overlap with the far right, the party is drawing voters away from other political parties.
The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) is a populist party that blends left-leaning economic policies with conservative migration and pro-Russian foreign policy initiatives
Sahra Wagenknecht, one of Germany's most divisive political figures, is soaring in the polls with two state elections just a week away, even though she is not on the ballot. In both Saxony and Thuringia, the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) — which the former Left Party parliamentary leader founded in January — is currently well ahead of the parties that make up Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition government: The Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP).
Espousing an unusual mix of left-wing economic policy and anti-migration rhetoric, the BSW is likely to play a part in government building in the eastern German states, where the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is leading in the polls at over 30%. All the established parties want to make sure it stays out of government.
Wagenknecht the disruptor
The emergence of the BSW underlines the disruption in eastern German politics that has taken place over the last decade. Disruption is also a good way to describe the BSW's influence on German politics.
In July, Wagenknecht described her own party's position in these terms to Geramyn's daily taz newspaper: "I believe that we simply represent and embody what many parties no longer stand for: enlightened conservatism in the sense of preserving traditions, security — on the streets and in public places, but also jobs, healthcare and pensions. The need for security, peace and justice has found a new political home with us."
Polls in eastern Germany show that the new Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) is gaining momentum. While some of its positions overlap with the far right, the party is drawing voters away from other political parties.
Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa/picture alliance
Sahra Wagenknecht, one of Germany's most divisive political figures, is soaring in the polls with two state elections just a week away, even though she is not on the ballot. In both Saxony and Thuringia, the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) — which the former Left Party parliamentary leader founded in January — is currently well ahead of the parties that make up Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition government: The Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP).
Espousing an unusual mix of left-wing economic policy and anti-migration rhetoric, the BSW is likely to play a part in government building in the eastern German states, where the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is leading in the polls at over 30%. All the established parties want to make sure it stays out of government.
Wagenknecht the disruptor
The emergence of the BSW underlines the disruption in eastern German politics that has taken place over the last decade. Disruption is also a good way to describe the BSW's influence on German politics.
In July, Wagenknecht described her own party's position in these terms to Geramyn's daily taz newspaper: "I believe that we simply represent and embody what many parties no longer stand for: enlightened conservatism in the sense of preserving traditions, security — on the streets and in public places, but also jobs, healthcare and pensions. The need for security, peace and justice has found a new political home with us."
The party presented a manifesto that political analysts say has not existed in Germany in quite this way before.
"The BSW program is aimed at people who on the one hand have economically more left-wing positions but have more conservative cultural attitudes," said Daniel Seikel, researcher at the Hans Böckler Foundation, which published an analysis of BSW supporters in June. "That explains to some extent why the BSW is so popular among people who voted for the AfD and the Left Party before."
Opinion polls in eastern Germany have shown that support for Wagenknecht's former party, the Left, has been decimated by the emergence of the BSW, while the AfD does not seem to have been overly affected by it — maintaining its 30% vote share in polls in Thuringia and Saxony and 20% nationally.
That might be considered surprising, given that the AfD and BSW appear to be fishing for similar voters. A recent study by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) found that BSW and AfD policies overlap in several areas. Both are in favor of limiting migration, increasing deportations of rejected asylum-seekers and creating more controls at Germany's borders, for example.
Where they differ is on issues like social welfare: The AfD wants to limit benefits, and the BSW wants to maintain or expand some.
Nevertheless, though accurate data on voter shifts can only be put together after the elections, Seikel's research suggests that though the BSW is taking some support from the AfD and the Left Party, the biggest group among BSW supporters in eastern Germany was people who voted for the center-left SPD at the last election.
Sahra Wagenknecht is an expert in attracting media attention
Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Populist, but not extremist
For Ursula Münch, director of the Tutzing Academy for Political Education, an independent institute, the BSW simply represents yet another threat to the traditional parties.
"The other parties are being put through the wringer by both the BSW and the AfD," she told DW.
Münch thinks that immigration remains the key issue for German voters, and she believes that the BSW has successfully managed to present itself to voters as a non-extremist alternative to the AfD.
"The BSW can at the moment claim not to be an extremist party," she said. "It avoids racist rhetoric and has relatively decent main candidates, who have local political experience and federal political experience. I do see a difference with the AfD there."
The BSW has ruled out forming coalitions with the AfD, but it has called for a less dogmatic approach to the far-right party.
The BSW appears to be winning over an above-average number of voters of immigrant background, a demographic that has traditionally voted for center-left parties.
"It's important to note that the vast majority of immigrants do not vote BSW," according to Seikel. "But it could be the case that relatively large numbers of people with an immigrant background have economic worries, low incomes and that these factors are more important for how they vote, and not so much their immigration status."
That could mean that many people of immigrant background live and work in areas where they fear more competition from rising immigration, said Seikel.
Russia-friendly and anti-NATO
The BSW also seems to be taking away SPD voters who are skeptical about Germany's support for Ukraine — another position that the BSW shares with the AfD and the Left Party.
The Left Party, which leads the state government in Thuringia, is the successor to the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), the communist party that once led the East German dictatorship. East Germany was part of the USSR-friendly eastern bloc, and there is still some residual hostility to the United States and NATO to this day.
Wagenknecht has sought to capitalize on anti-American sentiment in the former East.
She suggested that opposing the stationing of US long-range weapons in Germany — a plan supported by the Christian Democrats (CDU), Germany's largest opposition party as well as the SPD, Greens and FDP — would be a condition for any coalition negotiations with the BSW.
"These weapons do not close a defense gap but are offensive weapons that would make Germany a prime target for Russian nuclear missiles. There are reasons why no other European country has stationed such missiles on its territory," Wagenknecht told the RND news network in early August.
"It's a relatively cheap demand to make because everyone knows very well that that can't be decided at the state level anyway," said Münch. "I'd say that's just electioneering, but also a clever chess move, because she touches certain fears — that Germany might be making itself a target — while knowing she doesn't necessarily have to stick to it."
Experts say making headline-grabbing statements is Wagenknecht's strength.
"I think she was always a populist, even when she was in the Left Party," said Münch. "She's someone who is very good at picking up the mood among the population. She is good at stirring the mood of anti-elitism, even though from her education and language, she is part of the establishment."
Nevertheless, the BSW appears to have established itself as a significant force, at least in eastern Germany, by filling in gaps and finding voters left behind by the other parties.
Edited by: Rina Goldenberg
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