- Europeans are not happy with economic interdependence, multilateralism and multiculturalism that have affected their way of life, for which they blame the Left-leaning political parties.
- The unbridled shift toward identity-based politics has overwhelmed traditional economic and social concerns, leaving people who are generally secular and pluralistic alienated.
- The emergence of AfD has become such a threat to both the CDU and the SPD parties they have even ordered a ban on its funds and used the spy agency to tap their phones.
- The decline of the left in the West is now irreversible and it reflects a failure to adapt to shifting social, economic, and political dynamics.
In a letter written by former president of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower criticizing the American right-wing political advocacy group, the John Birch Society, he wrote, “Every extremist, whether of the left or the right, is wrong” and right now Western Europe is in a tug of war between these extreme ideologies.
Europe, particularly Germany now faces the prospect of the rise of ultra-nationalist right-wing polity. The fact is that Europeans are not happy with economic interdependence, shared legal framework, and commitment to multilateralism and multiculturalism that has affected their way of life and they blame the political parties that lean left.
But what has shaken up everyone in Europe is the rise of the Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) political party[1]. Since 2021, AfD has doubled its vote share received 20.3% of the vote and has emerged as the second-largest party. It is now the first far-right party in Germany after the end of World War II history. With this victory, the once-political fringe has increased its seats in Germany’s parliament or Bundestag[2].
It seems the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), led by Friedrich Merz, who secured a victory with 28.5% of the vote will have to form a coalition government in Germany. However, what many may not know about German politics is that the other opposition party, the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) for over seventy years.
What is amazing and at the same time disturbing from a democratic perspective is that post-war and after the unification of Germany, the SP and the CDU in Germany have formed a grand coalition (Große Koalition) four times.
- 1966–1969 – Under Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger (CDU)
- 2005–2009 – Under Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU)
- 2013–2018 – Under Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU)
- 2018–2021 – Under Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU)
Both the main political parties in Germany under the guise of political deadlock have formed the government which indicates, that meeting the new boss same as the old boss. For decades, this game has been played in German politics and Germany has been called an advanced democracy. Ideologically if we view it from Indian politics, it would be like the BJP and the Congress forming a coalition government.
As per the rule in Germany, a political party has to get a 5% vote share and only then they can be represented in the parliament. With the AfD getting over 20%, the decades-long façade of SPD and CDU pretending to be opposite to one another is now being unravelled. Both parties will now have no choice but to join forces and even though they disagree on economic and immigration issues, for the sake of the nation they will form the government under the new Chancellorship of Friedrich Merz.
The fact is Germany is ruled by just one political party pretending to be irreconcilable opposites. The emergence of AfD has become such a threat for both of these parties they have even ordered a ban on its funds and used the spy agency to tap their phones. Such is the power of these two political parties, already some talks could lead to AfD being frozen out of power[3].
Can this be called fascism as AfD received more than 20% of the vote share given to it by the citizens of Germany?
But that is German politics.
In fact under the Hare-Niemeyer method and the Sainte-Laguë/Schepers[4] method to ensure fair seat allocation, the government in Germany can change the seat allocation at its convenience. Imagine in India during the general election the ruling party keeps changing the constituency under the guise of delimitation. These methods are so complicated that under them, the SPD and the CDU can easily curtail the number of seats allocated to AfD all under the banner of stopping extremism. The working class who have been the backbone of the left in the last decade has increasingly gravitated toward right-leaning political parties and this is true with industrialized democracies like the US, France, the UK and Germany.
The notion of “How the Left Lost the West“[5] stems from the growing perception that left-leaning political movements in Western democracies have become disconnected and in their quest for progressive thinking, they have abandoned their traditional voter bases, leading to a shift in political landscapes. Already, Nationalist and Euroskeptic parties are on the rise and several EU countries (e.g., Hungary, Poland, Italy, and France). Leaders like Viktor Orbán (Hungary), Giorgia Meloni (Italy) and Marine” Le Pen often challenge EU policies, particularly on unchecked migration, judicial independence, and woke out-of-control LGBTQ+ rights.
Also, the unbridled shift toward identity-based politics and cultural issues (e.g., LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, and gender equity) has overwhelmed and overshadowed traditional economic and social concerns, leaving people who are generally secular and pluralistic alienated. To make matters worse, countries like Germany which experienced several terror attacks in the name of Islam are still supporting open border policy.
There is now a “cancel culture” that will give credence to political correctness rather than look at issues with reason and pragmatism. The case of point is the United Kingdom where the police and civic authorities faced with overwhelming evidence of Pakistani Muslim gangs grooming underage girls for sex was overlooked as they did not want to be called racist.
Also, the left under the garb of protecting freedom of speech and expression has imposed draconian laws to curtail conversations and opinions on social media platforms. With the rise of alternative media, social media platforms are now being seen as partisan news outlets. Unable to challenge them the left accuses such a platform of fascism which has undermined the democratization of the media.
The fact is the left has failed outstandingly when it comes to propagating its traditional left-leaning narratives. These platforms amplify populist messages and highlight perceived failures of leftist governance, further alienating disaffected voters. The left’s reliance on mainstream media which is out of touch as seen in the US with the likes of CNN, NBC, CBS etc still not coming to terms with Donald Trump’s victory. That has ensured they remain out of touch with grassroots movements and concerns.
The left has failed to develop policies that resonate with rural and small-town communities, addressing their specific concerns and it has doubled down on its progressive ideals. They have demonized voters with conservative cultural values leading to polarization. In Germany since December 2023, German farmers have been protesting against the federal government’s decision to abolish tax breaks on agricultural diesel and introduce a vehicle tax for farming vehicles and these are out-of-touch environmental overreach policies.
In the UK, thousands of British farmers protested in front of the Parliament against its decision to abolish a long-standing inheritance tax exemption for agricultural properties. Set to take effect in April 2026, the new policy imposes a 20% tax on farms valued over £1 million when passed to the next generation[6]. This is all from the playbook of leftist socialist ideology.
Ironically, the farmer’s protests in India are democratic but farmer protests in Germany are seen as the rise of fascism. The government in Germany used its powers to influence established news outlets to accuse the right groups, including members of the AfD have infiltrating and exploiting the movement for their political benefit[7]. They argue that the far-right groups are using farmer frustrations to push nationalist and anti-government narratives.
The decline of the left in the West is now irreversible and it reflects a failure to adapt to shifting social, economic, and political dynamics. The left has failed to address the root causes of voter disillusionment and promoting progressive ideals aggressively that only placate to a minority and it will take years to regain their footing in Western democracies.
References:
- [1] https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/20/europe/afd-germany-elections-young-intl/index.html
- [2] https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/24/europe/germany-election-afd-cdu-intl/index.html
- [3] https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/24/europe/germany-election-afd-cdu-intl/index.html
- [4] https://www.bundeswahlleiterin.de/en/service/glossar/s/sainte-lague-schepers.html
- [5] https://thesecuritydistillery.org/all-articles/The%20Free%20Fall%20of%20the%20Left%20in%20Western%20Democracies:%20A%20Call%20for%20Political%20Renewal
- [6] https://apnews.com/article/uk-farmers-tax-protest-dc3fd3640acb1628cd85d43b8413fad0
- [7] https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-far-right-exploits-farmers-protests/a-67920952
Balaji is a freelance writer with an MA in History and Political science and has published articles on defence and strategic affairs and book reviews. He tweets @LaxmanShriram78. Views expressed are the author’s own.
Shashank Pandey 
Sidhartha Muraleedharan 
Diksha Bharti