Just how much are 2020 U.S. election conspiracies affecting Germany's own vote?


Germany's far-right movement isn't expected to make significant noise in the country's elections on Sunday — in fact, the Alternative for Deutschland Party is polling slightly below its 2017 numbers — but the influence of extremist groups is "stronger than polls tellus us," Boris Pistorius, the Social-Democratic minister of Lower Saxony, told The Washington Post.
Some people think that's a result of conspiracy theories, including QAnon, that have sprouted up in the United States in recent years, gaining traction during former President Donald Trump's time in office and, especially, after he was defeated by President Biden in the 2020 election. For instance, the Post reviewed now-deleted messages in a far-right group's chatroom on the Telegram app, some of which advocated for "occupying election offices."
There's not a consensus on how widespread or meaningful the seemingly U.S.-inspired rhetoric is in the German context, however. Miro Dittrich, a researcher for the Berlin-based Center for Monitoring, Analysis, and Strategy, told the Post that far-right claims of election fraud have been in play for a few years now in Germany, but they gained prominence after Trump "starting telling the 'big lie'" last year. "Far right groups and the AfD are carefully monitoring the success Trump is having with this narrative," Dittirch said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

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.
On the other hand, Detlef Junker, a historian focusing on the U.S. at the University of Heidelberg, said it's only a "lunatic fringe" that has been taken in by the conspiracies. Peter Wittig, who served as the German ambassador to Washington, from 2014 to 2018, agreed with both to an extent, telling the Post that Trump's rhetoric has indeed had some influence on Germany's far-right, but the actual political results are milder because Germany's multiparty parliamentary system has been able to prevent a mass movement. Read more at The Washington Post.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Who owns Gaza? Israel's occupation plans
The Explainer Egypt, Israel and Britain have ruled the beleaguered territory
-
Savages: a tragi-comedy set in a 'quirky handcrafted world'
The Week Recommends This new animated film by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Claude Barras is undeniably political, but it has a hopeful message
-
Why 'faceless bots' are interviewing job hunters
In The Spotlight Artificial intelligence is taking over a crucial part of recruitment
-
JD Vance rises as MAGA heir apparent
IN THE SPOTLIGHT The vice president is taking an increasingly proactive role in a MAGA movement roiled by scandal and anxious about a post-Trump future
-
Congress should 'step in' to block Trump's White House ballroom makeover
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
ICE scraps age limits amid hiring push
Speed Read Anyone 18 or older can now apply to be an ICE agent
-
Trump's global tariffs take effect, with new additions
Speed Read Tariffs on more than 90 US trading partners went into effect, escalating the global trade war
-
House committee subpoenas Epstein files
Speed Read The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for its Jeffrey Epstein files with an Aug. 19 deadline
-
Eighty years after Hiroshima: how close is nuclear conflict?
Today's Big Question Eight decades on from the first atomic bomb 'we have blundered into a new age of nuclear perils'
-
Epstein: A boon for Democrats?
Feature Democrats' push to release the Epstein files splits the GOP, sending the House into an early summer recess
-
India rejects Trump threat over Russian oil
Speed Read The president said he would raise tariffs on India for buying and selling Russian oil