THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND SOCIO-POLITICAL PRECONDITIONS FOR THE FORMATION OF THE ALTERNATIVE FOR GERMANY PARTY

Abstract

Based on the analysis of sources, such as programmatic and pre-election documents of the Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland –AfD) party, materials of civic-political initiatives and formations that preceded its establishment, processing a range of informational, feature and statistical materials, taking into account the works of German, British, Swiss, and American researchers, authors aim to illuminate the historical preconditions and direct socio-political and socio-economic reasons of the emergence, stages of formation, and achievements of the AfD’s first electoral successes on the German political arena. It is established that in Germany, after the Second World War, alongside liberal-conservative and social-reformist parties, several right-wing populist or right-radical parties emerged. Their development occurred in three waves and was marked by legislative restrictions from the state, stigmatization from society, weakness of internal organizational structure, and competition from ruling parties, leading only to temporary electoral successes at the local level. The formation of the new right-wing populist party AfD was primarily influenced by the European debt crisis of 2010 and the Eurozone rescue policy of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government. The article extensively examines the main stages of the party’s genesis and development: the formation of the “Plenum der Ökonomen” in 2010, the “Bündnis Bürgerwille” in 2012, the political alliance “Wahlalternative 2013” and the actual establishment of the party in 2013. The main foundational and programmatic documents are analyzed, highlighting the idea of Germany’s exit from the Eurozone and return to a national currency as a recurring theme. Another important factor in the success of AfD in the early stages of its history was the party’s ability to unite those segments of German society that were skeptical of the integrationist European policies of the ruling parties. Undoubtedly, the refugee crisis that engulfed EU countries and Germany in particular in mid-2015 provided a powerful impetus for the party’s further development. By radicalizing its programmatic demands, AfD achieved sustained electoral success not only at the regional but also at the federal levels over several years.