AfD's East German Strength Not Due to DDR Legacy, Says Knabe

Hubertus Knabe, former director of the Stasi Memorial Hohenschönhausen, challenges the common explanation that the AfD's success in eastern Germany stems from lingering DDR influences. In an opinion piece for Der Freitag, Knabe argues that attributing the far-right party's rise to East German biographies is misguided. He points to the upcoming state election in Saxony-Anhalt on September 6, where the AfD could potentially secure an absolute majority, with polling above 40%, while the CDU has dropped from 37% in 2021 to around 20%. Knabe dismisses both the DDR-legacy theory and the labeling of AfD voters as 'fascists' as insufficient explanations. The article suggests that the real reasons for the AfD's appeal in the East are more complex and not rooted in the region's communist past. Knabe's perspective is notable given his background as a former political prisoner and long-time head of a major Stasi documentation center.