European Elections: A Well-Deserved Defeat for the German Greens

The three parties of the German government coalition (SPD, Greens, FDP) were all among the losers of the election for the European Parliament. For the Greens, it was a smashing defeat, as they lost 40% of the votes they got four years ago, as a result of the growing disgust at the party’s war policy and the Green Deal, both of which put a heavy economic and financial burden on the population.

The growing opposition to the government’s policies was strongly reflected in the considerable gains for the AfD (Alternative for Germany party) and for the BSW, the new party founded just a few months ago by Sahra Wagenknecht. In spite of a truly massive campaign by all the other parties and mainstream media against the AfD, it has emerged as the second strongest party after the Christian Democrats (CDU). Moreover, the BSW, which strongly opposes more weapons supplies to Ukraine and supports the Chinese peace proposal, received more votes than the aggressively pro-war Free Democrats.

The results in terms of percentage: CDU/CSU 30% (+1,1); AfD 15,9% (+4,9); SPD 13,9% (-1,9); Greens 11,9% (-8,6); BSW 6,2% (+6,2); FDP 5,20% (-0,2); Linke 2,7% (-2,8).

Another striking aspect of these election results is the clear division between the western and eastern parts of Germany. While in the west, the CDU came in first in most voting districts, in the east the AfD was the winner in almost all districts, and the young BSW emerged as the third-strongest after the CDU. This could be a portent for the Berlin coalition in view of the three state parliamentary elections scheduled for September (Saxony, Thuringia, Brandenburg, all in the east). In all three of these states, the coalition partners came in well behind the AfD, the CDU and the BSW in that order. A serious political crisis affecting all of Germany, with an upsurge of unrest, is preprogrammed if the AfD wins those elections and all the other parties continue to boycott cooperation.

Unlike in France, where the President dissolved the parliament immediately after the election results were in and decreed early elections for the end of June, the German government will likely try and stay in power, despite its miserable showing, until the end of its term in the autumn of 2025. That implies a growing instability and ungovernability which will radiate from Germany into the rest of Europe.