Rise of AfD marks end of German exceptionalism on populism

The entry of the right-wing AfD into three regional parliaments on March 13 marks the end of German exceptionalism on populism, argued Thorsten Benner on Bloomberg Television and Al Jazeera on March 14. Germany is set to become a normal West European country with the establishment of a populist force to the right of Merkel’s Christian Democrats. In the short term, Merkel will likely stay the course on her refugee policy and keep pursuing a European deal with Turkey. In the longer term, this will make Germany’s role in Europe more difficult, since nervous centrist politicians are likely to be influenced by the anti-EU stance of the AfD.