In Germany, over 7 million eligible voters have a history of immigration. Studies reveal that they are a neglected group, and many of them have lost faith in the major parties. It is controversial to note that some of them are drawn to the far-right AfD party, as reported by DW Reports.
In Germany’s federal election in February, political parties have less than a month to persuade voters to back their platform. People with an immigrant background are one electoral group in particular that could provide lagging parties with a chance to catch up.
One in eight German voters, or an estimated 7.1 million eligible voters, have an immigrant background, meaning they immigrated to Germany with their parents or at least one of them.
Voting is generally less common among this group than among those without an immigrant background. Additionally, they are less devoted to voting for a specific party than they once were, according to Friederike Römer, an expert at the German Center for Integration and Migration Research (DeZIM).” Mainstream political parties are not so eager to convince them, counterintuitively the far-right Alternative for Germany does.
Roughly 20 percent of voters with immigrant ancestry might consider supporting AfD. However, immigrant voters are more likely than those without immigrant ancestry to select “none” when asked which party they believe has the know-how to address today’s issues.
How Far-right Issues can also be Appealed to Immigrant Voters?
Inflation and the economy rank highly among the concerns of eligible voters with a history of immigration. Römer continued, “We also observe that those without a migrant background are frequently more worried about becoming victims of crime.”
The AfD party has been using a xenophobic platform and disparaging immigrants during its campaign, but it is also clearly trying to win over new supporters, including those with immigrant ancestry. “It is not surprising that immigrants consider voting for an anti-immigrant party because the voting behavior of people with a migration history today usually doesn’t differ from that of non-immigrant voters,” said Naika Foroutan, Director of DeZIM.
The purpose of the ‘With a migration background for Germany’ club, which was started by AfD party member Robert Lambrou, is to “encourage people with a migration background to join or support” the AfD. According to a June 2023 survey, 4.5 percent of state-level AfD politicians had a history of migration, which is slightly lower than the percentage for all parties.
When it comes to persuading immigrant-rooted subpopulations of their political beliefs, the AfD excels. They say, “You’re not the problem,” to immigrants who have been in Germany for a long time, particularly those from Turkey or the [Middle East and North Africa] region. “The issue is the new ones,” Römer stated.
Videos that are making the rounds on social media In order to attract more attention from citizens with Islamic heritage, the AfD employs anti-gender narratives. German-Turkish voters, however, frequently abstain from voting entirely. This subgroup’s voter turnout is low when compared to other groups with a history of migration.
Ethnic Germans who re-established in the former Soviet Union are another significant subgroup of people with a migrant background; they are often called “late repatriates.” After those with Turkish and Polish ancestry, they are the third-largest immigrant group in Germany. Studies show that immigrants from the former Soviet Union consider immigration to be a very significant issue. According to Jannis Panagiotidis of the Research Center for the History of Transformations (RECET), “the AfD is the most open about trying to stylize itself as the party of Russia Germans.” The party primarily achieved this by making authoritarian pledges, pledging to uphold law and order, and taking a critical stance on migration.