Guardian Editorial Links UK Far-Right Unrest and AfD's German Gains to 'Politics of Powerlessness'

A Guardian editorial published on September 7 draws a connection between recent masked agitation on a road in southern England and the far-right Alternative für Deutschland's (AfD) strongest-ever result in a German state election, arguing both events reflect a belief that the political system has lost control.

According to the editorial, several hundred men wearing balaclavas blocked an A road in the Dover and Portsmouth area over the weekend. Separately, the AfD more than doubled its vote share in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, rising from 21% five years ago, the piece states.

The Guardian writes that while the two events differ in scale and nature, they share an underlying narrative that established institutions can no longer provide security, prosperity or meaningful change. The editorial states that the street protest "dramatises" this claim, while the German election result "threatens to institutionalise it."

The piece notes that a prospective AfD-led state government in Saxony-Anhalt would mark the first far-right-led state government in Germany since World War II, and describes the party as hostile to migrants, Islam, LGBTQ+ rights and climate policy. The editorial also states that the AfD has senior figures linked to former neo-Nazi groups.

The Guardian cites figures indicating that approximately 170,000 foreign nationals live among a population of 2 million in Saxony-Anhalt, and that roughly a fifth of the state's doctors were born abroad.

The editorial further points out what it calls a paradox: an AfD-led government could oversee the same state intelligence service that has classified the party as "rightwing extremist."

The piece is part of The Guardian's editorial section and invites readers to submit responses of up to 300 words for potential publication in the newspaper's letters section.