• CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org
    1·
    4 days ago

    If you’re wondering what the AfD districts in the West were: Gelsenkirchen in the north and Kaiserslautern in the south.

    The most notable thing in Kaiserslautern is Ramstein air base and friends. I guess the military votes far-right.

    I have no idea what’s up with Gelsenkirchen. SPD came second with CDU just behind, so maybe it’s what would be vote splitting in a dumber electoral system. As it is, the map is just a map.

    You can find an interactive version here.

    • VerifiedSource@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      2·
      4 days ago

      Gelsenkirchen is a traditional working class area, which used to be secure SPD heartland. SPD has lost voters massively to AfD among workers over the years, including among the immigrant working class.

      Soldiers in Germany tend to vote CDU. The last couple of years the head of the Bundestag’s defense commission Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann from the FDP was super popular. In the past SPD was also really strong. These two polls on the Bundeswehr subreddit have FDP and CDU together with a supermajority. Now that’s of course not representative, but gives you an idea that the military doesn’t vote far right.

      • CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org
        0·
        3 days ago

        including among the immigrant working class.

        Really?? That doesn’t seem possible, since people tend not to vote for candidates that openly hate them. Do you have a source?

        Soldiers in Germany tend to vote CDU. The last couple of years the head of the Bundestag’s defense commission Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann from the FDP was super popular. In the past SPD was also really strong. These two polls on the Bundeswehr subreddit have FDP and CDU together with a supermajority.

        That makes sense. CDU is (by German standards) strong on defence, even I know that.

        Now that’s of course not representative, but gives you an idea that the military doesn’t vote far right.

        I was reminded of the scandals relating to Wehrmacht idolisation, but I have no idea how how widespread a problem that is, so I’ll defer to you.

        • VerifiedSource@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          2·
          3 days ago

          https://taz.de/Tuerken-fuer-die-AfD/!5449750/

          This is about Germans with Turkish background. It’s the same as in other countries: We came here legally and are law abiding taxpayers. These illegal newcomers are criminals and ruin the image of all immigrants. It’s about law and order and strong leadership. If you vote Erdogan in Turkey, AfD is closest in Germany. The Grey Wolves are the biggest right wing extremist organizations in Germany as well, so keep that in mind.

          German-Turks are also specifically targeted like in this video by Krah appealing to nationalist sentiments and referring back to German-Turkish alliance going back to WW1.

          scandals relating to Wehrmacht idolisation

          Yes, this happens from time to time as does other crap. The severity of these cases varies.

          In 2023 the Bundeswehr let go of 62 soldiers, among them 10 officers, for extremism. It’s not just nazis, but also for example anti-vax conspiracy nutters. I don’t have any comparisons of these numbers to other armed forces.

          The Bundeswehr emphasizes democratic values and educates people along their principles of Innere Führung and Staatsbürger in Uniform. For example that soldiers are ultimately serving their conscience is stressed. Structurally the Bundeswehr also has differences to other militaries. There are no separate military courts for example. Crimes involving soldiers get dealt with by regular courts.

          In 2019 about 15% of soldiers have immigrant parents or immigrated themselves. Of course they can be extremists just as well.