Germany’s ‘leaderless coalition’ blamed as far-Right surges in polls

OLAF SCHOLZ has been blamed for a surge in support for Germany’s hardRight AfD party, with the opposition saying that his “leaderless” coalition is undermining trust in democracy.

The Christian Democrats (CDU) pinned the blame on the chancellor after fresh polling put the Alternative for Germany party on 18 points – neck and neck with Mr Scholz’s Social Democrats.

Mario Czaja, party secretary of the conservative CDU, said voters were “losing faith” in the country’s democratic institutions due to the government’s “chaotic and leaderless policies”.

In the same poll by Infratest, the CDU were ahead on 29 points.

“There has always been a far-Right voter potential throughout the country. ‘Many people are losing faith in our democracy and its institutions’

We can’t reach this hard core, and that’s not our goal,” Mr Czaja told the Funke media company.

“But among those who support the AfD at the moment there are also many people who are disappointed, who are increasingly losing faith in our democracy and its institutions.”

The AfD has risen in national polling from around 10 per cent last summer to between 16 per cent and 18 per cent today.

It was founded in 2013 to campaign against the Euro but quickly moved its focus to campaigning against Muslim immigration and climate policies.

It also advocates ending sanctions against Russia and stopping weapons deliveries to Ukraine.

Analysts attribute the AfD’s recent resurgence to factors including an increase in migrant arrivals since the start of the year and persistent inflation.