this post was submitted on 07 Oct 2023
118 points (96.8% liked)

Europe

8484 readers
1 users here now

News/Interesting Stories/Beautiful Pictures from Europe ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡บ

(Current banner: Thunder mountain, Germany, ๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ช ) Feel free to post submissions for banner pictures

Rules

(This list is obviously incomplete, but it will get expanded when necessary)

  1. Be nice to each other (e.g. No direct insults against each other);
  2. No racism, antisemitism, dehumanisation of minorities or glorification of National Socialism allowed;
  3. No posts linking to mis-information funded by foreign states or billionaires.

Also check out !yurop@lemm.ee

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[โ€“] AlteredStateBlob@kbin.social 5 points 11 months ago

While all these address certain problems, the majority of voters for the AfD don't see these as their core issues for what they're voting. I do not see a solution as to how to get blatantly racist and often one issue voters back on the ballot for less extreme parties.

I'm not saying the changes you're proposing wouldn't help and wouldn't dent their numbers, but I'm very, very weary of the fact that being an open Nazi has become acceptable in large swathes of the population again. Not just that, it actively increases attractiveness of certain politicians in the polls.

COVID and Trump-Era Republicans (as in the CxU and AfD taking their playbook and finding plenty of success with it, didn't they even meet with DeSantis to pick his brain?) did an absolute kickflip with rationality by marrying far right ideology with anti-covid, anti-science, conspiracy theory rhetoric and opening up a huge new voter base.

It's a super complex issue ranging from our Cum-Ex chancellor to Otto Normalo feeling disenfranchised by foreigners, who we desperately need if we want to plug the holes in our economy and keep at replacement level (for all the good it'll do us) and not being able to afford families, homes, or anything beyond basic subsistence.

I fear a large group of their current voter base will not be convinced by any measure taken by any government that isn't the one THEY voted for. And they won't vote for anything except extreme anymore. Used to be primarily boomers, but I see it in plenty Gen X and Millennials as well already in my close and expanded social/work circles.