While young Germans will be able to vote from the age of 16 in the European election, the far-right party is now in the lead among 14-29 year olds, with 22% voting intentions, according to a recent study.
The meeting is sold out. In this brewery in Straussfurt, in Thuringia, this April evening, the audience is generally between 40 and 70 years old, but young faces emerge in the assembly. “I am for the AfD, but I am not allowed to talk about it at school,” proclaims Adrian, 16 years old, microphone in hand. The guest he came to see is regional deputy Björn Höcke, “one of the most extreme faces” of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party, summarizes Politico. An elected official whose opinions and public speeches “recall the fascist and Nazi theories of the 1930s.” He was also fined 13,000 euros on May 14, for a Nazi slogan pronounced at a meeting in 2021.
However, Adrian is convinced. He will vote for the first time in the European elections, and his vote will undoubtedly go to the AfD.
“What I really like about the AfD is that there is a desire to take care of young people, to do a lot for 15-25 year olds.”
Adrian, young AfD supporterat franceinfo
Like high school students, German youth appear more and more receptive to the ideas of the extreme right. In April, the AfD rose to second place in voting intentions in the European elections in Germany, at more than 18%, according to Euronews. The party’s progress is clear among 14-29 year olds. He comes first in this age group, with 22% of voting intentions, according to the Youth in Germany 2024 study. While nearly five million Germans will be able to vote for the first time, from the age of 16the AfD is trying to seduce this young electorate, at meetings and on social networks.
Towards the end of the meeting, Adrian rushes to take a photo with Björn Höcke. “I have the impression that the AfD has answers on pensions, schools, public spending,” the teenager advances, very enthusiastic. He closely follows the party on social networks, just like Lennart and Mika, 15, who remained at the door of this sold-out meeting. The AfD, in Mika’s opinion, “is the party that best represents young people.”
The AfD deputy in Thuringia, a state in the center-east of the country, Stefan Möller clearly understands the importance of this electorate. “We must not disappoint, keep in touch with this youth”, he emphasizes in a calm voice. In the Straussfurt region in particular, “we have to find themes that speak to young people”. Their means of transport, “the question of lack of money” and also their identity. “The AfD considers itself the party of identity and these are questions that young people are asking themselves. ‘Who I am, who I want to become.'” Adrian confirms this. With the AfD, he feels “very reinforced” in his identity, “as a man” and against immigration.
Two hours east of Straussfurt, Florian Russ and two colleagues are heading towards a residential area of Magdeburg, the truck full of posters. From one street to another, they hang their signs for the next local and European elections. These call for “stop illegal immigration”, to vote AfD “for our safety.” All three are members of Jeune Alternative, another lever to bring young people towards the extreme right. In February, a court in Cologne ruled that the AfD youth organization was “clearly an extremist movement”, advocating a “ethno-nationalist vision” of Germany. This is confirmed by the ideology defended by Florian Russ, who says he joined the AfD because he felt “stranger in [son] own country”.
The 25-year-old German claims to have found there “a group, a community”. The organization offers social activities, between parties and hikes, he says while putting up his posters, in addition to activist activities. “For the Europeans, we will write directly to 16-17 year olds, to encourage them to register on the lists and vote for the AfD”, he continues. However, most of the communication is found elsewhere: “It is on social networks that we will reach the masses the most.”
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On this point, the AfD may have a head start. According to an analysis by political consultant Johannes Hillje, cited by the Deutsche Welle, TikTok videos of AfD MPs get an average of 458,000 views, compared to 72,000 for the Social Democratic Party (SPD) group. The AfD was “the first to use the platform systematically and strategically”, he points out to AFP. Germany’s social-democratic chancellor, Olaf Scholz, only opened his account in April, promising to “don’t dance”.
To carry out its digital strategy, the AfD relies on a vast network made up of national and local elected officials, parliamentary groups and influencers, notes the Social Media Watchblog. And in Thuringia alone, three people work full time on the social networks of the AfD parliamentary group, assures MP Stefan Möller. “Our teams also provide information to influencers so that they can create content,” he elaborates.
“It is mandatory to have these influencers to win opinion. TikTok can clearly be a network that carries the AfD message to young people.”
Stefan Möller, AfD MP in Thuringiaat franceinfo
A regional deputy found his audience on TikTok: Ringo Mühlmann, 48 years old, some 7,000 subscribers and 130,000 likes. In the Parliament of Erfurt, the capital of Thuringia, the AfD elected official describes training, contacts with far-right influencers to gain visibility, and even some tips. “We write our speeches in such a way that we can cut them and make short videos,” he slips. On TikTok, Ringo Mühlmann publishes extracts from his interventions, criticizes environmentalists or even “the madness of the genre”. The chosen one uses unvarnished with transphobic rhetoric.
As much as migration issues and ecology, gender identities are at the heart of AfD discourse on TikTok. Maximilian Krah, head of the party list for the European elections, criticizes studies on the subject, denounces “the wokists” and provides advice on seduction. His most viewed video consists of a series of masculinist remarks aimed at young men.
“Don’t let yourself be told that you have to be cute, sweet, weak and left-wing. Real men are right-wing. (…) Then you will find a girlfriend.”
Maximilian Krah, head of the AfD list for the European electionson TikTok
“My partner had just broken up with me, so I thought about that a lot,” says Erik Ahrens. The young, very confident far-right consultant says he collaborated with the candidate on this video and his TikTok strategy. “Young men identify with these topics. I knew it was a good way to attract attention.”
These young men, “especially from eastern Germany, but not only”, are for Erik Ahrens the audience to capture on TikTok. The consultant says he is increasing training with members of the AfD, to help them gain this digital ground. With three key tips: “talk to the camera and to your audience, create lots of content, and speak directly, with emotion, to people”. The springs of populism? “Our opponents say it’s populist. We call it authenticity.”
At the end of March, TikTok decided to limit the broadcast of Maximilian Krah’s videos, recently embarrassed by a spying case for China. “He shared conspiracy theories such as the ‘great replacement’.” justified a spokesperson for the platform, cited by Politico. A “censorship” with limited effects, says Erik Ahrens. “We are going to flood TikTok with videos in the future.”
In Berlin, Theresa Lehmann, a specialist in online hate phenomena, is concerned about this trend and notes that “right-wing populism and algorithms work very well together.” Within the Amadeu Antonio Foundation, she leads the pre:bunk project on TikTok, which uses false information circulating online – particularly from the far right – to deconstruct it. From one video to another, “we help young people to detect disinformation strategies”.
On TikTok, the members of pre:bunk also see themselves as social workers working with young people. Those who spend time on the platform, who feel alone or disoriented, and that the AfD can convince.
“These young people are inundated with information with very few sources. They have a lot of feelings about what they see, and no one responds to that. That’s where the AfD comes in.”
Theresa Lehmann, from the pre:bunk projectat franceinfo
Theresa Lehmann’s team is trying to reach this audience and respond to these feelings, but the task is not simple. TikTok, she summarizes, remains “a playground” for the far right. “They can present themselves as friendly, accessible politicians. And who would not be a threat.” Even convincing young voters to vote for them?
This report was produced with the help of Salomé Hénon Cohin, journalist in Germany, for preparation and translation.