Business associations warn of "major damage" from AfD successes

Surveys show the AfD on the verge of election victories in several federal states. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution classifies some of the state associations in question as right-wing extremist. The heads of the leading German business associations are worried - especially in view of the upcoming European elections.

The leading German business associations are warning of AfD election successes in the coming year. "Anyone considering voting for the AfD must know: This party causes great damage," said the President of the Federation of German Industries, Siegfried Russwurm, to the German Press Agency. Employers' President Rainer Dulger said: "The increasing popularity of the AfD is very, very worrying for me as an entrepreneur and as an employer president."

The European elections will take place in June. In September, the state parliaments in Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg will be re-elected. In all three states, the AfD has recently been ahead in the polls. The AfD state association in Saxony was recently classified by the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution as a confirmed right-wing extremist organization, while the AfD in Thuringia has been classified as such for some time.

With a view to the elections in the three eastern German states, Russwurm said: "I am very worried. Much of what the federal government says we have delivered is met with great skepticism and a lack of acceptance in large parts of the population. In this situation, the AfD is fishing for votes with supposedly simple solutions that are not solutions at all. I almost exclusively meet entrepreneurs who show a clear edge: The AfD's program is damaging our country. It harms the economy and social cohesion."

Cosmopolitanism "the basis of our prosperity"

The AfD derives many of its positions from nationalism, criticized Dulger. "We did not build our prosperity in Germany with nationalism, but we were and are a cosmopolitan and liberal industrial and trading nation." Germany benefits from its openness to the world like few other countries. "I have not yet seen an answer from the AfD to the question of how we want to fill the skills gap that the ageing of society is bringing us," said the President of the Confederation of German Employers' Associations.

Dulger went on to say that he was particularly annoyed by the AfD's anti-European stance. "We must not forget that the model of the European Union, a united Europe, is not only the reason and cause of the lasting peace in Europe that has lasted for more than 70 years, but also the guarantor of the prosperity that we all enjoy today," continued Dulger. "That is the successful model of Europe that we want. And none of this is on the AfD's agenda - their destructive anti-attitude simply worries me greatly."

Russwurm calls for a pro-Europe campaign

Many AfD voters are disappointed with the major parties, said Dulger. "They say: enough is enough. Politicians should pay more attention to this. This includes the federal government now delivering and not getting caught up in debates with itself again. Many parties don't want to touch certain topics either. That is wrong. This creates a vacuum that the AfD is happy to fill."

Russwurm called for more commitment to Europe. There are only six months left until the European elections. "I would like to see the democratic parties launch a campaign long ago to convince as many voters as possible of how sensible and important Europe is for us. You hear this from industry everywhere. We want more Europe and a stronger Europe. Some things that we have not yet tackled in Europe need to be tackled now, such as a capital markets union, deeper energy cooperation and a digital single market with equal implementation across the EU."