Germans in Finland warn AfD rise echoes 1930s

Germans living in Finland were unsurprised by the far-right Alternative for Germany’s victory in the Saxony-Anhalt state election, Yle reported. They said the party’s growing popularity was part of a broader political development.

Robert Stark, a community educator who has lived in Finland’s capital region for nine years, said the AfD had maintained a visible presence among voters.

“For ten years, the AfD has been the only party that has put up bouncy castles at family events. It has been the only party that has been present and talked to people,” said Stark, 37, who holds German and Finnish citizenship.

Stark said Germany was following the same trend as other European countries where right-wing populist parties are gaining support.

He said more attention should be paid in Finland to the AfD’s pro-Russian position, including its opposition to sanctions against Russia. The party refers to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a “special military operation” rather than a war, he said.

Some Germans also want a return to older values and to the period before what they call woke culture, Stark said. He added that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claims about the West becoming ill appealed to some voters.

Stark said he was concerned about the forces behind the AfD. “This is a little like the 1920s and 1930s, but even more extreme, when the richest person in the world supports Germany’s far-right party,” he said.

Hans-Christian Daniel, a provost living in Espoo, moved to Finland more than half a century ago but still follows politics in his native Germany closely.

Daniel said the AfD’s electoral victory was linked to its ability to respond to public dissatisfaction with emotions rather than facts, whether the issue was fuel prices or unemployment figures.

“Its success in the election was due to the fact that the AfD says it is an alternative for Germany, but it does not show what that alternative actually would be,” Daniel said.

He described the party’s immigration policy as particularly alarming. In his view, the AfD’s strict rhetoric about immigrants was not far removed from the language used against Jews during Adolf Hitler’s rule.

“At that time, people said, ‘Kauft nicht bei Juden’, or ‘Do not buy from Jews’. The AfD’s message about immigrants is very similar,” Daniel said.

Daniel recently attended the birthday celebration of his godmother, who had turned 100, at a German kindergarten. He said several guests who had lived through the war hit their fists on the table and said that the current direction of events was unacceptable.

AfD doubled its share in Saxony-Anhalt

State elections are held every five years in all 16 German states. Three more state elections are scheduled for this autumn, while the next Bundestag election will be held in spring 2029.

In the Saxony-Anhalt election, 83 representatives were elected to the state parliament.

The centre-right Christian Democratic Union was the largest party in the previous election in 2021, winning 37.1 per cent of the vote. Its share fell to 17.2 per cent this time.

The AfD, classified as a far-right party, was the second-largest party in Saxony-Anhalt in 2021 with 20.8 per cent of the vote. Its share more than doubled to 43.8 per cent.

The AfD will have 39 representatives in the state parliament. A majority would have required 42 seats.