The Economics of AfD Expansion
With the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) achieving almost 25 percent in the elections in the two east German states of Brandenburg and Saxony in September 2019, and both …
Welcoming Places – Few and Far Between?
These days negative and at times dehumanizing rhetoric aimed at migrants—both legal and undocumented and of varying religious and ethnic make-up—are grabbing headlines around the globe. The trend to ignore …
Austria’s Vote: An EU Trend with an Alpine Twist
Austria’s parliamentary election on September 29 has mirrored one key result of the vote for a new European Parliament held in May of this year: the rise of unconventional center …
Merve Schmitz-Vardar, Visiting Fellow
AICGS is pleased to welcome Merve Schmitz-Vardar as a Visiting Fellow at AICGS from August to October 2019. Ms. Schmitz-Vardar is a research and teaching assistant at the Chair of …
Trinitarian Politics in Germany: Impact of the State Elections in Brandenburg and Saxony
A lesser-known story in Christian history is how the concept of the Trinity of God—Father, Son, and Holy Ghost—was the subject of massive disagreement in the early years of the …
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Episode 13: Elections Reveal New Trends in German Political Scene
Voters in two eastern states went to the polls on September 1, with perhaps surprising results: they kept their long-governing parties in place despite threats from the far right and …
The Mainstream Strikes Back with Victories in Saxony and Brandenburg, but the AfD Is Not Going Away
Voters in Brandenburg and Saxony today rendered judgments that reach well beyond the borders of two states that used to be part of the German Democratic Republic, as my colleague …
The 2019 Regional Elections in the East: Small States, Big Impact
On September 1, the eastern German states of Brandenburg and Saxony will elect new state parliaments (Landtage). Both are relatively small states with 2.5 million and 4 million people respectively …
In Brandenburg, A Last-Ditch Attempt for the SPD to Maintain Its Stronghold as Anti-Establishment Parties Surge
If the European elections were not a wake-up call for the collapsing Social Democratic Party in Germany, the election in the state of Brandenburg on September 1 is likely to …
Electoral Uncertainty in a Changing Saxony
On September 1, voters in the eastern state of Saxony will be headed to the polls to elect a new state government. In making their choice, voters will have to …
Blockchain: Chained Up by Legal Issues
The German government acknowledges that interest in blockchain technology is growing rapidly and new applications are emerging almost daily. Blockchain as a technology even made it into the German CDU/SPD …
Elections in Thuringia: Can Ramelow’s Coalition Hold On?
On October 27, voters in the eastern German state of Thuringia will head to the polls. In Thuringia’s last election, which took place in 2014, a left-wing “red-red-green” coalition was …
The 9 Percent Trap: The German Left’s Identity Crisis
The German Left Party is in the midst of yet another crisis. Party chairperson Katja Kipping has been openly deliberating resignation; the co-founder and influential former Social Democrat Oskar Lafontaine …
Episode 11: Inequality and Social Division: An Economic Perspective
Globalization and technological change have reshaped the world economy and have been vital sources of economic growth and prosperity in the United States and Germany for a decade. Yet polarization …
