A far-right party with a record of extremist rhetoric, including minimizing the Holocaust, will not be part of Germany’s government, despite coming in second during national elections earlier this year.
The formation of a governing coalition on Wednesday made official what had appeared clear since the election: that Alternative for Germany, known as AfD, would be shut out.
Instead, Friedrich Merz, who heads the center-right Christian Democratic Union, has teamed up with the center-left Social Democrats to form a coalition, the parties announced on Wednesday.
AfD steadily rose in national polls in Germany
Their coalition follows a period in which AfD rose steadily in the national polls in Germany, achieving the best result for a far-right party since the Holocaust. The party has worried many in Germany and beyond, including local Jews, with its pro-Russia and anti-immigrant platform. The party’s supporters routinely chant “Alice fur Deutschland,” a play on “Alles fur Deutschland,” which was a Nazi slogan.
US officials, including Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk, who is working as a White House advisor, signaled support for AfD prior to the election, and Vance urged European politicians to consider entering into partnerships with far-right groups.