Seven Facts about Germany’s AfD Party

Earlier this month, Alternative for Germany (AfD) became the first far-right political party to win a state election in Germany since World War II. With additional state elections on Sept. 22 and federal elections about a year away, here are some key facts about AfD and its supporters, based primarily on a Pew Research Center survey of 1,008 German adults conducted Jan. 11 - March 20, 2024.

1. Around one-in-five Germans (19 percent) see AfD favorably, but a large majority (79 percent) have a negative opinion of the party. Germans with lower levels of education are 10 percentage points more likely than those with higher levels of education to express a positive opinion of the party (22 percent vs. 12 percent). Men also have more positive views of AfD than women do (26 percent vs. 11 percent), and the share of men holding this opinion has risen 10 points since 2022.
2. AfD has become more popular in recent years.Today, 19 percent of German adults have a positive view of the party. This is the highest favorability we have recorded in eight years of surveys on the topic. The party's favorability is up significantly from 14 percent in 2021, though largely unchanged from the 17 percent measured last year.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Pew Research Center.