Schäffer on AfD’s rise: copying its rhetoric is not a strategy

Ahead of the 6 September state election in Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD is polling strongly and seeking to turn regional momentum into a claim for national power. Yet a first-place finish would not automatically translate into government. Coalition arithmetic and the continued refusal of other parties to cooperate with the AfD remain decisive.
In a conversation with TVP World, IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer argued that mainstream parties should resist the temptation to respond by adopting the AfD’s language or parts of its policy agenda.

“You won’t win back voters from the AfD by copying their far-right slogans.”

The experience of Austria is instructive. Conservative parties that try to neutralise the far right by moving closer to its positions risk legitimising its narrative rather than reducing its appeal. This is particularly relevant to Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s current approach, which increasingly echoes AfD demands on migration and border policy.

The discussion also addressed the wider implications of the AfD’s agenda. Proposals to take Germany out of the euro and Schengen would go far beyond a domestic political shift. They would affect European economic integration, free movement, cross-border communities and Germany’s relations with its neighbours, including Poland.

The TVP World interview with Sebastian Schäffer was recorded from Thessaloniki.