B2 Non-refereed book chapter or chapter in a compilation book

The Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the 2021 Federal Election: Down But Hardly Out




AuthorsHansen Michael A., Olsen Jonathan

EditorsRoss Campbell, Louise K. Davidson-Schmicht

Publishing placeCham

Publication year2023

Book title The 2021 German Federal Election

Series titleNew Perspectives in German Political Studies

First page 141

Last page161

ISBN978-3-031-38929-0

eISBN978-3-031-38930-6

ISSN2947-6747

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38930-6_8

Web address https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38930-6_8


Abstract

The Alternative for Germany (AfD) had a mixed record of success in the 2021 federal election. Although it shed just under a fifth of its voters compared to 2017, the party maintained its support or even gained strength in East Germany, especially in southeast Germany. Although the party’s influence over public policy is extremely limited given the exclusion strategy pursued by all the mainstream German parties, the AfD is becoming an effective ‘populist issue entrepreneur,’ maintaining issue ownership over EU scepticism and anti-immigrant sentiment while capitalising on (or simply inventing) new issues in the electoral marketplace. Given this, the AfD will likely remain a fixture of German politics for many years to come.



Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 22:57