The Rise of Right-Wing Nationalism in Germany: How Do North American Politics Affect Elections Across the Pond?

Chloe Bradley

Introduction

In Germany, circa 1923, within a matter of months the price of bread skyrocketed from around 250 German marks in January to almost 200 billion marks by November. This process, known as hyperinflation, was a result of the Great Depression and World War I, which left the country financially and physically in shambles. Citizens were frustrated by the government's failed attempts to address inflation and began to lose faith in their representatives. The coalescence of political and economic issues left the public extremely discontent with the state of their country and searching for a new leader. These grievances paved the way for the Nazi Party to rise in popularity by the 1930s and ultimately gain enough votes to become the largest party in the German Parliament at the time. 

Germany utilizes a proportional electoral system to elect its legislature, meaning the number of seats in parliament is proportional to the percentage of votes they received. In 1932, the Nazi party won 37% of the legislative vote, therefore allowing the Nazis to take on a legislative majority. The German President is merely a ceremonial position but has the power to appoint a chancellor who controls government affairs. The president at the time, Paul von Hindenburg, appointed Hitler as chancellor in 1933 after facing backlash from the failures of previous chancellors. He felt positioning Hitler in power would appeal to the Nazi Party in parliament and help control legislative action to his benefit. However, as history demonstrates, this quick rise to fame rapidly deteriorated German democracy and foreshadowed the Holocaust. The Nazis were a far-right extremist party that was rooted in nativist ideals and preached policies of rebuilding the German economy, regaining lost territory, and creating an authoritarian government. Germany under the Nazi regime was a significant historical example of the rise of far-right parties, and their impact still lingers in modern German politics. The Alternative for Germany Party (AfD) is a right-wing extremist party that won 20.8% of the vote in the 2025 federal election and therefore received 151 seats in the lower house of the German parliament, known as the Bundestag. The AfD party stance surrounds nativist, Islamophobic, and authoritarian rhetoric. Across the globe, the success of political parties is largely driven by the social, political, and economic grievances facing the public. Less than a decade ago, Europe was dominated by centrist, moderate parties, such as the Christian Democrats on the right and the Social Democrats on the left. Today, however, far-right parties have gained dominance in many European countries, particularly in Germany. 

Economic Causes

Far-right populist parties can be traced back to the Great Recession, which began in 2007. The Great Recession was triggered by the United States housing market, which had over-allocated high mortgages to borrowers with poor credit histories and lacked market regulation. This event led to the collapse of the United States' economy, triggering a global economic downturn. Across Europe, the European Union Labor recorded an over 3% increase in average unemployment rates, rising from 6.8% in 2008 to 10% in 2009. 

However, Germany had a unique experience. While Germany’s GDP did decline 4.7% in 2009 due to the economic crisis, the German labor market was almost unaffected by the recession. Other countries experienced significant employment declines, such as a 2% decrease in the United States and 6% in the United Kingdom. During the recessionary period, German Chancellor Angela Merkel instituted interventionist policies known as the "Kurzarbeit" Scheme. The Kurzarbeit program reduced employees’ working hours rather than laying off workers to combat increased unemployment across the continent. The administration chose to increase government spending to stimulate the economy. The government's increased role in the economy counteracted the previously established neoliberal stance across Germany, upsetting individuals and companies that supported minimal government intervention. As a European Union member, Germany faced an obligation to bail out other European neighbors due to increased welfare needs from the economic collapse. Domestic German companies united, feeling it was not Germany’s responsibility to bail out fellow European nations. However, international, export-oriented businesses disagreed because they relied on the financial success of foreign countries for exports; this created a major divide in German capitalism and ultimately led to the formation of the AfD. Export-based companies supported the use of the euro and staying within the European Union because the eurozone relationships benefited their trade requirements. Contrarily, domestic companies resented the government's focus on corporate giants. As the government focused on recovering the European economy, national businesses felt ignored and turned to political parties to attempt to have their interests represented. At this time, the major parties, including the Christian Democratic Union, Christian Social Union, and Free Democratic Party, aligned with international corporations and the eurozone alliance. The AfD originally formed to fill the ideological gap between international and domestic corporations concerning the opposition to transnational bailouts. The party displayed neoliberal ideals, therefore attracting free-market advocates and economic nationalists as an early support base. Initially, the party’s sole focus was economics; immigration policies were not a central concern for the party at this time. 

Socio-Political Factors 

In 2015, over one million Middle Eastern citizens fled to Europe seeking asylum, predominantly from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq, due to the Syrian Civil War and ongoing instability throughout the region. Many European countries closed their borders and refused to accept migrants, including Hungary and Poland. Italy, Greece, and Spain also made efforts to limit migration. Alternatively, German leader Angela Merkel stated, “We can do it,” in reference to Germany’s ability to manage the influx of asylum seekers and welcome over 800,000 refugees in 2015. The German government opted not to limit immigration, prompting around 750,000 additional asylum applications the following year. This event, now referred to as the Migration Crisis, was a tumultuous period in government, resulting in public dissent regarding the open borders policy and a rise in anti-immigration attitudes. 

The perception shift on immigration drew disproportionate attention to foreigners' actions throughout Europe, especially Germany, particularly regarding crime rates. For example, between 2015 and 2016, around 1,200 women reported sexual assaults in Cologne, Germany, and surrounding cities on the night of New Year’s Eve. These crimes were found to have been committed by a group of Muslim men of Arab and North African descent. Additionally, in December of 2016, a Tunisian man with allegiance to ISIS drove a truck into a Christmas Market in Berlin, killing a dozen people. The listed events and other isolated violent acts formed the view that the rise in immigration caused an increase in crime against natives. However, there is little analytical data to back these beliefs. The Joint Data Center on Forced Displacement, based on country-level statistics, found no statistical support for the claim that increased immigration led to more foreign suspects committing crimes against German natives; rather, it found a decrease between 2014 and 2015. Whether true or not, local and international news coverage set the agenda, amplifying fear of refugees from Muslim majority countries, inspiring nativism and Islamophobic sentiment. 

The AfD party rose to prominence as it shifted its focus primarily to anti-immigration policies. In 2017, it received 12.6% of the parliamentary vote, despite having held no prior seats in the Bundestag. This increased approval is attributed to the Migration Crisis setting the AfD’s new agenda, with one survey reporting that at least 50% of major German party constituents supported a refugee cap. Recent 2025 polls have found that 68% of Germans believe Germany should restrict the number of refugees taken in, and 67% of respondents would like to see permanent border controls. The heightened discontent with the effects of the migration crisis helps the extreme AfD party gather support, as citizens hope to witness observable change. The Chair of the AfD party in 2017, Frauke Petry, made claims that Muslim newcomers' views on the role of women and social values clashed with the European way of life. Her speech demonstrated the use of femonationalism to marginalize Muslim culture. Femonationalism is a right-wing tactic to highlight the feminist movement to isolate Muslim followers with contrasting beliefs, especially men. Therefore, reinforcing views against immigration and Islam in Europe to the already frustrated public. Before the immigration crisis, the AfD was primarily focused on economics in response to the 2008 crisis; however, the party capitalized on the refugee influx between 2015 and 2016, shifting its focus to immigration and amplifying nativist sentiment, which has contributed to the continued success of the extremist party. 

Role of Regions 

Following World War II, Germany was split into military occupation zones under the control of the Allied Control Council, comprised of the Soviet Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. The United States, the United Kingdom, and France established the Federal Republic of Germany, also known as West Germany, while the Soviet zone became the German Democratic Republic, also known as East Germany. The contrast between the democratic West and the communist East highlighted the Iron Curtain that divided Europe, especially Germany. 

These explicit ideological differences continue to shape German politics to this day. German Reunification began in the 1990s as an attempt to reunify Germany as a single state, hold free and fair elections, and reintroduce democratic principles across the country. While there was overwhelming support for unification from both the East and the West, East Germany unfortunately did not reap the predicted benefits. As a result of unification, East Germany experienced an economic downturn because Eastern businesses were unable to compete with Western companies, leading to extremely high unemployment rates. The loss of jobs and faltering economy led East Germans to lose trust in the new government and resent the unification process. Additionally, because East Germany was previously under a communist regime, there was little democratic infrastructure available in the area. As a result, West German representatives entered government and bureaucratic roles in the region, which contributed to feelings of a lack of representation for East Germans and irritation towards Western influence. East Germany was unable to replicate West German levels of participation in charity, unions, and other social programs, so East Germans widely felt like “second-class citizens” in their own country. The extensive grievances faced by East Germans due to unification laid the foundation for anti-establishment and anti-democratic values, aligning much of East Germany with the AfD platform. Research shows the xenophobia rates are significantly higher in East Germany than in West Germany, which is said to be caused by a lack of concern for the region’s success from the country's leadership. The growing animosity towards democracy in the East coincides with the AfD's success in Eastern districts. In 2024, two East German regions, Saxony and Thuringia, experienced the highest turnout ever for the AfD party. Specifically, in Saxony, the AfD won 31% of the vote. While Western Germany tends to fall more centrally on the political spectrum, studies support that hostilities lingering from unification in East Germany generate heightened electoral support for the far-right AfD party. 

Globalization of the Far Right 

Across the pond, the United States is witnessing its own rise in right-wing parties. In the 2020 election, voters who identified as right-wing populists almost unanimously voted for the Republican candidate Donald Trump. Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” nationalist movement, along with his hard-line immigration stance, has positioned the Republican Party closer to right-wing populism. Right-wing populism is more restrained than far-right extremist groups, but focuses on similar ideals: stricter immigration controls, protectionism, anti-elitism, and more traditional social values. Back in 2016, a lack of economic growth and growing national debt drew support for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, where he advocated for fair trade and American jobs. Insurance costs due to the Affordable Care Act angered the public and ultimately shifted the vote to elect Donald Trump to his first presidency. Later on, under the Biden administration, record-high levels of undocumented immigration promoted anti-immigration sentiment and gathered support for Donald Trump’s stance on mass deportations and emphasis on domestic production. Similarly, before the 2024 election, inflation peaked in 2022 at 9%—the highest rate of inflation in the United States in 40 years. The rising costs of goods and services severely impacted American citizens, leading to increasing discontent with former President Joe Biden. The political shifts in the United States in recent years parallel developments in Germany, in that discontent with political leadership has set the stage for right-wing parties to seize power. 

Correspondingly, the emergence of social media apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok turned domestic elections and issues into international news, creating these parallels we see across the globe. More people than ever have access to political content, enabling democratic processes in one country to affect entirely different continents or regions. Due to increased global connections, American politicians and celebrities can use their influence and social media presence to gain support for foreign far-right parties. In January of 2025, Elon Musk spoke via livestream on the social media platform X to German citizens in reference to an upcoming election. Musk asserted that German citizens need to embrace their culture and heritage and prevent the “dilution” of Germanism. During the same stream, Musk declared the AfD was the only hope for Germany. Social networks, especially in this case, provide political credibility to the far-right extremist party and expose larger demographics to develop opinions on political issues. This year was the AfD's most successful in terms of parliamentary representation, with the party securing the most seats in government since its founding in 2013. American political players help mobilize support for such far-right parties through publicized endorsements, drawing new attention to the party. The AfD was officially declared an extremist organization in 2025, which drew sympathy from United States Vice President JD Vance. Vance met with party co-leader Alice Weidel, prior to recent elections, as a sign of support against the AfD’s recent ostracism by other parties in the Bundestag. Vance has publicly denounced the assertion of the extremist title in reference to the AfD, even going as far as to say the German government is restricting free speech and democratic principles to exclude a representative party from power purposefully. These powerful American figures coming to the defense of the extremist party add fuel to the fire that native Germans are being discriminated against, therefore, strengthening the AfD's stance. Correspondingly, AfD’s ongoing ties to other countries’ right-wing parties aim to build “international legitimacy” and further the party's ideals beyond Germany’s borders.

Conclusion

The rise of far-right parties is not exclusive to Germany. Extremist parties are almost always preceded by social and economic unrest combined with widespread dissatisfaction. Historical examples include the Nazi Party, the National Rally Party in France, and the Brothers of Italy party; however, the AfD is one of Europe's most extreme parties. From suspected Nazi symbolism to Islamophobic campaign posters, the AfD party's exclusive, aggressive rhetoric continues to marginalize groups such as Muslims, LGBTQ citizens, and immigrants or migrants. The World Report organization has found an increase in politically motivated crimes committed by German citizens, such as a 114% increase in anti-Muslim hate violence between 2022 and 2023, and a 96% increase in antisemitic crimes between 2022 and 2023. The motivation for these types of crimes is thought to be linked with the rise of AfD support and ideals. The party may fall on the extreme end of the spectrum, but it is supported by legitimate backing. The social and economic climate in Europe allowed the successful rise of the AfD party, which has now become one of the most followed parties in Germany. The success of far-right extremism in Germany and beyond sparks thoughts of a modern-day revival of the far right and a regression of progressive beliefs.