Germany's state election results reflect a new search for identity

How a new sort of polarization spells instability for Europe

Germany elections
(Image credit: Carsten Koall/Getty Images)

Since the outbreak of the second World War 80 years ago, Germany has been a bulwark against the re-emergence of fascism and the far-right. As a consequence, it became an oasis of stability in a shaken Europe. But Germany's politics, like most other European countries, is now in turmoil.

The results of Sunday's state elections in Brandenburg and Saxony show two losers and two winners: The "Altparteien" or the "old parties" — the Social Democrats, who are in fact in free fall, and Merkel's conservative CDU lost out to the right-wing "Alternative für Deutschland" (AfD), which almost became the strongest party in both states, and the Green Party, which managed to gain ground despite the fact that the economically weak east of Germany is traditionally not a winning territory for them.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Madhvi Ramani

Madhvi Ramani is a writer and editor based in Berlin. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Washington Post, BBC, and others.