The left-wing party representing Die Linke Sahra Wagenknecht has been one of the most visible stars of the German left in the 21st century. Now, however, he has become an outcast in his own party.
In September, Wagenknecht gave a speech at the German Bundestag in which he claimed that the German government had “started an unprecedented trade war” against Russia.
– Of course, the war in Ukraine is a crime, but it is absurd that we punish [Vladimir] Putin plunging millions of Germans into poverty and destroying our industry, Wagenknecht pandered while members of the Bundestag shouted protests.
Throughout the war, Wagenknecht has criticized Russian sanctions and arms aid to Ukraine, but it was too much for many that he claimed that Germany had started a trade war out of thin air.
Hundreds of members of the left party resigned from the party after the speech, and Wagenknecht received heavy public criticism.
At the same time, the speculation around Wagenknecht is intensifying. The populism of the charismatic Wagenknecht appeals to voters.
Published by the Bild magazine in October and commissioned by the Insa research center according to the opinion survey (you will switch to another service)Wagenknecht is currently the second most popular politician in Germany.
If Wagenknecht founded his own party, 10 percent of the survey respondents would definitely vote for the party, and up to 30 percent could imagine voting for it.
For comparison, the support of the left-wing party represented by Wagenknecht hovers around five percent.
Opposing “woke thinking” appeals to the right
For years, Wagenknecht has been a staunch representative of the left-wing party, where many of the internal contradictions of the party, which strives for support, culminate.
In 2016, a left-wing activist threw a chocolate cream cake at Wagenknecht’s face at a party meeting. The motive for the cake was that Wagenknecht had started to demand a stricter immigration policy after about one million asylum seekers arrived in Germany in 2015.
Last year, Wagenknecht published a book in which he accused “lifestyle leftists” of elitism and rejection of traditional folk.
According to Wagenknecht, the left is alienated from the problems of “ordinary people” and focuses too much on identity politics, so-called “woke issues”, such as the promotion of gender-neutral language.
The greens in particular have become a scapegoat for Wagenknecht.
By publishing it in October With a YouTube video (you will switch to another service) Wagenknecht accused the Greens of being Germany’s most hypocritical, dishonest and “overall the most dangerous party in the German Bundestag”.
Loud criticism of the Greens and “woke thinking” appeals especially to the supporters of the anti-immigration and partly far-right AfD. According to a survey published by the Bild magazine, two-thirds of AfD supporters view Wagenknecht positively.
Director of the Insa research institute that carried out the survey Hermann Binkert estimated that Wagenknecht could take away up to half of the AfD’s supporters if he founded a new party.
The Left Party, on the other hand, would threaten to fall below the five percent vote threshold and drop out of the Diet altogether.
The party is between the tree and the bark. They want to get rid of Wagenknecht, but it may backfire in the next election.
The war in Ukraine divides Germans
Researcher at the Foreign Policy Institute, which follows German politics Tuomas Iso-Markku reminds that due to historical reasons, East Germany has a more positive attitude toward Russia and a more negative attitude toward the United States than the rest of the country.
Wagenknecht is particularly popular in East Germany, which is the strongest support area for both the left-wing party and the AfD. Both parties have also traditionally represented a pro-Russia line.
Iso-Markusta Wagenknecht’s popularity indicates above all that a certain part of the population does not consider sanctions necessary. However, he would not draw broader conclusions about the matter.
– The majority of Germans still support the sanctions, and many also demand that the government do more to support Ukraine, says Iso-Markku.
However, as the energy crisis deepens and winter approaches, the fear of waning solidarity towards the Ukrainians has grown in Germany.
In September, the chairman of the Christian Democratic CDU party Friedrich Merz shrugged, calling Ukrainian refugees “social tourists” in an interview with Bild magazine.
Merz later regretted the statement, which received a lot of criticism from his own party as well.
In October, there was news about a fire at the reception center housing Ukrainian refugees. The police investigated the incident as attempted arson. Earlier, swastikas had been hammered into the walls of the building.
The energy crisis fuels populism
The energy crisis triggered by Russia’s war of aggression, the impending recession and extremely high inflation are fertile ground for Wagenknecht’s “realism”, according to which trade must now only be done with countries at war, and thus also with Russia.
Wagenknecht has also pointed out that Germany is still buying oil from, for example, Saudi Arabia, which is at war in Yemen.
Iso-Markku emphasizes that Wagenknecht or other extreme candidates do not have realistic opportunities and may not even want to rise to decision-making positions.
However, according to Iso-Markku, the popularity of the populists affects the government’s policy. Because of the Nazi past, Germany has a deep-rooted fear of the nation’s economic plight, which is feared to bring extremist movements to the surface.
So far, there seems to be a demand for populism challenging the government’s sanctions against Russia.
It still does not guarantee that it is Wagenknecht who will be able to translate his popularity into electoral success.
It is not yet known what Wagenknecht’s potential party would look like or if he is even starting one.
What do you think of Wagenknecht’s high level of support in Germany? You can discuss the topic on 8.11. until 11 p.m.
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