Support for the far-right Alternative for Germany climbed to a record, widening its lead over all three parties in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s ruling coalition.
In the latest sign of voter frustration with the government, the AfD — as the party is widely known — increased to 22%, trailing only the conservative Christian Democrat-led bloc at 26%, according to a poll conducted for the Bild am Sonntag newspaper by INSA.
Support for Scholz’s Social Democrats was at 18%. The junior coalition partners, the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats, were at 14% and 7%, respectively.
The AfD’s advances in recent months have been fueled by discontent over issues ranging from record immigration, persistently high inflation and costly climate-protection measures.
Coalition infighting, including a drawn-out feud over measures to shift household heating away from fossil fuels, has further irritated voters. The INSA poll said 70% were dissatisfied with the government and 60% with Scholz’s performance as chancellor.
Read More: Far-Right Resurgence Limits Scholz’s Room for Action
Scholz has sought to respond by urging Germans to sign up to his vision for technological and environmental transformation and warned against the rise of “ill-tempered” political rivals he accused of exploiting the fears of ordinary citizens.
On Saturday, the Bild tabloid looked at the changes that might take place in Germany if the AfD was in power. The country’s most popular daily suggested prices would rise and travel could be restricted because of the party’s anti-European Union stance.
INSA surveyed 1,266 voters between July 17 and July 21. The poll has a tolerance of plus or minus 2.9 percentage points, according to the public-opinion researcher.
