This changes nothing. The AfD needs close to 50% or the socialist unity party will form a coalition against them.
This is also just 2 states. The AfD gets maybe 15% in all of Germany, much less in the west. It's only a local phenomenon and Germans haven't learned anything.
There remains nothing to be seen. All the other socialist unity party members have ruled out a coalition with the AfD. Which means the two state governments will be headed by Merkel's CDU with the support of whichever far-left parties made it above 5%.
Most likely both states will be run by CDU + BSW (the spoiler specifically hyped up to prevent the AfD from winning).
I keep being surprised that you think all or most of the BSW votes would go to the AfD.
In Thuringia at least, the AfD improved its result while BSW also got double digits.I find this very reasonable. A lot of people style themselves as being 'on the left' while also being reasonable on issues like immigration and culture, same as SW.
Again, people said all the same things you say now (and believe me, I don't begrudge you your pessimism living in Europe and Germany of all places) about the Netherlands, where there were also "spoiler" anti-establishment parties as you would call them. And now they have a new government including Geert Wilders.
At the very least, this is going to scare the living daylights out of the regime. In my judgment, they are less interested in flooding us with immigrants than they are in self-preservation.
Sure, other left-wing parties lost some percentages but their main goal has been achieved: they've prevented an AfD government. It's not like CDU+BSW are going to do things differently than the red-greens, so the losses are minor as long as the left-wing establishment remains intact.
I don't think there's any chance BSW will cooperate with the AfD. That's wishful thinking. They've said they wouldn't. They are from far-left parties. And I don't think they have the fortitude to stand up the the barrage of attacks that the media, Antifa and the state would direct their way.
This changes nothing. The AfD needs close to 50% or the socialist unity party will form a coalition against them.
This is also just 2 states. The AfD gets maybe 15% in all of Germany, much less in the west. It's only a local phenomenon and Germans haven't learned anything.
There remains nothing to be seen. All the other socialist unity party members have ruled out a coalition with the AfD. Which means the two state governments will be headed by Merkel's CDU with the support of whichever far-left parties made it above 5%.
Most likely both states will be run by CDU + BSW (the spoiler specifically hyped up to prevent the AfD from winning).
I keep being surprised that you think all or most of the BSW votes would go to the AfD.
In Thuringia at least, the AfD improved its result while BSW also got double digits.I find this very reasonable. A lot of people style themselves as being 'on the left' while also being reasonable on issues like immigration and culture, same as SW.
Again, people said all the same things you say now (and believe me, I don't begrudge you your pessimism living in Europe and Germany of all places) about the Netherlands, where there were also "spoiler" anti-establishment parties as you would call them. And now they have a new government including Geert Wilders.
At the very least, this is going to scare the living daylights out of the regime. In my judgment, they are less interested in flooding us with immigrants than they are in self-preservation.
Sure, other left-wing parties lost some percentages but their main goal has been achieved: they've prevented an AfD government. It's not like CDU+BSW are going to do things differently than the red-greens, so the losses are minor as long as the left-wing establishment remains intact.
I don't think there's any chance BSW will cooperate with the AfD. That's wishful thinking. They've said they wouldn't. They are from far-left parties. And I don't think they have the fortitude to stand up the the barrage of attacks that the media, Antifa and the state would direct their way.