2023-06-18 06:28:09
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has set up its stand in front of the entrance to a supermarket in western Schwerin, at the foot of small blocks of buildings. Customers do not jostle there but many of them accept with a smile a pencil in the colors of this party. “Don’t forget to vote and convince those around you”says Leif-Erik Holm to a young man who came to grab a leaflet.
Only one AfD mayor in Thuringia
On Sunday June 18, this federal deputy will try to win the town hall of his city, capital of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania region. If he succeeded, it would be a first for his party. Created ten years ago, it has federal, regional and municipal elected officials and a single mayor, in a village of 88 inhabitants in Thuringia. With 27.5% of the vote, the accession of Leif-Erik Holm to the second round of these municipal elections in a regional capital was already a feat.
“I think I can winassures this elected official in a white shirt. A lot of voters didn’t vote for us in the first round because they thought I would be unlucky, but now the cards are being reshuffled. People are very upset and don’t want left-wing politics anymore.”he adds, referring to the outgoing Social Democratic (SPD) mayor – who came out on top in the first round with 42% of the vote – and to the federal government ofOlaf Scholz.
Welcoming refugees, a campaign issue
At the information stand, if passers-by talk about the life of the town, federal politics emerges fairly quickly. “We are overwhelmed with all these refugees. Who will pay for their housing and integration? », launches a thirty-year-old, reinforced by Leif-Erik Holm. On his placards, this one promises “an immediate stoppage of thereception of refugees » if he is elected, even though a mayor cannot afford it. “I know it but it is important that this message comes from the municipalitieshe admits. We must show that we are not only a party of protest but of action. »
On paper, the chances of this far-right candidate being elected are slim because a common political front has formed against him. His competitor, outgoing mayor Rico Badenschier, remains cautious, however. “We must not demobilize. People have to go vote. We have to show that Schwerin is a city open to the world”explains this former doctor, while admitting a certain racism in his city. “My successor at the hospital was Iraqi but he left town because his wife was suffering from people’s remarks. It is a fact. Before 2015, there were very few foreigners here, and all of them were from Eastern Europe. Since 2015 there have been Syrian or Afghan refugees. People aren’t used to it. The AfD knows how to exploit this theme and that of the pseudo-rise in crime”he adds.
Rise of the AfD at the national level
For Wolfgang Muno, from the University of Rostock, the rise of the AfD in Schwerin is explained by the popularity of its candidate, a former radio host. Schwerin is also an example of the rise of this party at the national level. For the past few weeks, this formation has been on the heels of the Social Democrats, with between 18 and 19.5% of voting intentions. A record in ten years. “For voters, it has become easier to vote for AfD because the conservative CDU/CSU and FDP parties have taken up its themes and made them acceptableexplains Wolfgang Muno. The AfD takes advantage of the context of multiple crises and government mistakes”he continues.
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Rico Badenschier, however, does not intend to hunt for the votes of AfD voters. “I’m asked to be more punchy but that’s not my style. If I am elected, I will have seven years to obtain results. And who knows where the country, the war in Ukraine and inflation will be by then? The AfD vote may fall”, he remarks confidently. A message also relayed in the national authorities of his party.
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