After the election in Hesse, the right-wing nationalist AfD is now represented in all of Germany's parliaments. The main focus for the Bundestag will now be its own problems, writes DW's editor-in-chief Ines Pohl.
This parallel is particularly alarming when one considers that one of the co-leaders of the AfD recently described the Holocaust as mere "bird shit in […] German history."
So this party is now represented not only in the federal German parliament, the Bundestag, but also in all 16 state parliaments. My country should be appalled by this; it should dominate the domestic headlines. The fact that this is not the case has a lot to do with the reason why the AfD was able to become so successful in the first place.
Angela Merkel has been in power for 13 years. And her opinion poll ratings have never been as bad as they are now. This is partly because a degree of weariness has set in. It's also because of the chancellor's controversial refugee policy. Above all, though, it's because of the constant quarreling within the government. Right from the beginning, the coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD was an alliance of necessity, and lacked a vision with which it could have won the people over. However, all the surveys now show that the open power struggles are what irritate the voters most.
A clear majority of Germans want no more of this grand coalition. So this election in Hesse was a fateful one for Merkel and her government. Had Merkel's ally, the head of government in Hesse, not been re-elected, she would have had an open rebellion on her hands. As it is, the CDU has suffered heavy losses but is still clearly the strongest force in the state. Right now, then, Merkel has nothing to fear on that front.
However, her governing alliance is still far from secure – because in this state election her SPD coalition partners again lost heavily, languishing at around 20 percent. This in a federal state where the Social Democrats have deep roots.
Germany's major political parties — What you need to know
There are seven political parties in the German Bundestag and they rarely agree on anything. DW takes a look at their ideologies, leadership and history.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Schmidt
Christian Democratic Union (CDU)
The CDU has traditionally been the main center-right party across Germany, but it shifted toward the center under Chancellor Angela Merkel. The party remains more fiscally and socially conservative compared to parties on the left. It supports membership of the EU and NATO, budgetary discipline at home and abroad and generally likes the status quo. It is the largest party in the Bundestag.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Schmidt
Christian Social Union (CSU)
The CSU is the sister party of the CDU in Bavaria and the two act symbiotically at the national level (CDU/CSU). Despite their similarities, the CSU is generally more conservative than the CDU on social issues. The CSU leader and premier of Bavaria, Markus Söder, ordered crosses in every state building in 2018.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Schuldt
Social Democrats (SPD)
The SPD is Germany's oldest political party and the main center-left rival of the CDU/CSU. It shares the CDU/CSU support for the EU and NATO, but it takes a more progressive stance on social issues and welfare policies. It is currently in a coalition government with the CDU/CSU and is trying to win back support under interim leaders Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel, Manuela Schwesig and Malu Dreyer.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kumm
Alternative for Germany (AfD)
The new kid on the block is the largest opposition party in the Bundestag. The far-right party was founded in 2013 and entered the Bundestag for the first time in 2017 under the stewardship of Alice Weidel and Alexander Gauland. It is largely united by opposition to Merkel's immigration policy, euroscepticism, and belief in the alleged dangers posed by Germany's Muslim population.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/U. Deck
Free Democrats (FDP)
The FDP has traditionally been the kingmaker of German politics. Although it has never received more than 15 percent of the vote, it has formed multiple coalition governments with both the CDU/CSU and SPD. The FDP, today led by Christian Lindner, supports less government spending and lower taxes, but takes a progressive stance on social issues such as gay marriage or religion.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kumm
The Greens
The Greens, led today by Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck, emerged from the environmental movement in the 1980s. Unsuprisingly, it supports efforts to fight climate change and protect the environment. It is also progressive on social issues. But strong divisions have occasionally emerged on other topics. The party famously split in the late 1990s over whether to use military force in Kosovo.
Image: picture-alliance/Eventpress Rekdal
The Left
The Left, led by Katja Kipping and Bernd Riexinger, is the most left-wing party in the Bundestag. It supports major redistribution of wealth at home and a pacifist stance abroad, including withdrawing Germany from NATO. It emerged from the successor party to the Socialist Unity Party (SED) that ruled communist East Germany until 1989. Today, it still enjoys most of its support in eastern Germany.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Gambarini
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SPD no longer a reliable partner
After this election debacle the calls from those who insist the SPD can only survive if it leaves Merkel's governing coalition as fast as possible will grow even louder.
This internal discussion will continue to preoccupy Germany over the coming weeks – preventing the government from doing its job. It's almost superfluous to comment on what a disaster this is, not only for our own country but for Europe, too, which is growing ever more polarized and coming apart at the seams.
There is some good news, though, on this election night. Hesse will be able to form a governing coalition whose members are all firmly anchored in our constitution, and will govern on a solid constitutional basis. Right-wing nationalist forces may now have representation in all German parliaments, but the anti-Semites have no seat in government.
