Germany at the Polls: Between Authoritarian Populism and Progressive Politics

On September 23, 2021, NYU’s Center for European and Mediterranean Studies and Deutsches Haus at NYU presented “Germany at the Polls: Between Authoritarian Populism and Progressive Politics,” with Sheri Berman (Barnard College), Thorsten Faas (Free University Berlin), Thomas Gschwend (University of Mannheim), and Constanze Stelzenmüller (Brookings). The conversation was chaired by Stephen Gross (NYU) and Thomas Zittel (NYU/Goethe-University Frankfurt).

The German Federal Elections on September 26, 2021 will place amidst turbulent times. The country’s’ electoral landscape is in flux with the weakening of established parties, an emerging right-wing populist AfD, and the increased importance of the personal factor in politics. This is met by a wealth of challenging issues such as climate change, migration, the global Covid-19 Pandemic, and changing geo-politics. This panel aims to take stock of the electoral situation on the eve of the upcoming elections and to offer a projection about potential electoral outcomes and their political implications. Panelist will offer introductory comments and thoughts and then enter into a panel discussion followed by a Q&A with the audience.