The conservative opposition of the Union – the sum of the Christian Democrats of the CDU and its Bavarian Christian Social partner of the CSU – have won the European elections in Germany, according to projections by public television ARD, with 30% of the votes. All eyes are directed, however, towards second place, which corresponds to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), with 16.2% of the ballots. The polls in recent days predicted a triple tie between the ultra party, the social democrats of the SPD and the Greens. But if the polls are correct, both the SPD and the environmentalists have been several points below: 14% for the former and 12% for the latter.
The result of the ultra party will mark the German political landscape in the coming months. Germany faces three crucial regional elections in the east in the fall in which the AfD could sweep. Polls give them around 30% of the votes in both Thuringia and Brandenburg and Saxony, which makes it extremely difficult to maintain the cordon sanitaire that the rest of the parties continue to apply to this formation.
In the national interpretation of these elections, the result of the Government coalition also stands out, a tripartite formed by social democrats, greens and liberals who, if their percentages are added, have left almost 11 points compared to the last European elections, held in 2019. With just over a year left until the next federal elections, citizens have sent a very powerful message to Scholz and his partners. The party that has obtained the worst results compared to the 2019 elections is The Greens, which have lost 8.5 percentage points.
The liberals of the FDP, the third partner in the Government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, have obtained 4.9% of the votes, while Die Linke (The Left) remains at 2.7%. On the other hand, the new populist formation of the former leader of Die Linke, Sahra Wagenknecht, would have obtained 5.7% of the votes, that is, it would have surpassed not only her former partners but also the liberals.
“A change in policy is necessary in Germany. I ask the chancellor, the Social Democrats, the Greens and the FDP to do so. Things cannot continue as they have in the last two and a half years,” said the leader of the opposition, the Christian Democrat Friedrich Merz. “You are harming our country with your immigration policies. Correct the course, it is necessary for our country,” he added. Ursula von der Leyen, member of the CDU and candidate to preside over the European Commission again, congratulated her colleagues from Brussels: “We are delighted with what you have achieved.”
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Germany voted this Sunday for its representatives in Europe – it provides 96 MEPs of the 720 total as it is the most populous country in the Union – with one unknown in mind: what result the AfD would obtain. Until two days ago, second place seemed to be extremely close with a three-way tie at 14%, according to the latest survey by public television ZDF. Other polls gave the AfD up to 17%, a notable jump from 11% in the previous European elections.
Although the German ultras have managed to collect more than 20% of the voting intention, their result represents a great success for a party that in recent months has been harassed by scandals related to accusations of espionage and corruption. Last January, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in several German cities against the AfD after a meeting that members of the formation held in Potsdam with neo-Nazis over a plan to expel millions of foreigners came to light.
AfD faces isolation in Europe after being expelled from the right-wing group Identity and Democracy (ID), led by Frenchwoman Marine Le Pen, in reaction to an interview by its candidate, Maximilian Krah, in which he stated that not all members of Adolf Hitler’s SS were criminals. Far-right, nationalist and populist parties are reorganizing in Europe; In the coming weeks it will be seen which group the Germans fall into, who will have between 16 and 17 MEPs.
27% for the FPÖ ultras
In Austria, the predictions of the advance of the extreme right are on the way to being fulfilled. According to various projections spread by the country’s media, the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) has achieved around 27% of the votes in the European elections (about 10 percentage points more than five years ago). If these data are confirmed, it would be the first time that the Austrian far-right is ahead of the rest of the parties at the national level.
The Christian Democrats of the ÖVP, who lead the current Government together with the Greens, suffer a sharp decline of nearly 11 percentage points and with 23.5% they are fighting for second place with the Social Democrats (SPÖ), whom the projections give 23%, practically the same result as five years ago. The Greens fall less than expected and would reach 10.5%, about four points less.
The Neos liberals obtain, always according to these first forecasts, a result similar to that of the environmentalists after rising slightly. The ultras have made a jump of almost 10 points compared to the result five years ago, when they accused at the European polls a corruption scandal that led to the breakup of the government coalition that they formed as a junior partner of the conservative Sebastian Kurz. The crisis of Ibiza case It cost the leadership of the then ultra vice-chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache, the protagonist of a hidden camera video recorded on the Balearic island in which he offered public contracts to a false Russian oligarch.
With a new leader, Herbert Kickl, the Austrian ultras, who have been part of several national governments and are present in three regional Executives, have regained their strength with their anti-immigration, Eurosceptic and anti-“elite” discourse. They have also been the first option for months in voting intention surveys ahead of the general elections scheduled for the end of September at the latest.
The Alpine republic shares 20 seats in the European Parliament; The six achieved by the extreme right are indicative that voters want “less Brussels and more Austria”, stated the head of the FPÖ list, Harald Vilimsky. The party considers that the European elections have been a test for the autumn general elections. “The Austrians have written history today,” Kickl proclaimed in his first reaction to the polls.
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