firewall | The European Conservative

If You Can’t Beat Them, Ban Them: The German Establishment’s Attack on Democracy

Sabine Beppler-Spahl August 28, 2025

In a potential test case for other regions, an AfD mayoral candidate was barred from the election for, among other things, quoting Tolkien and admiring Wagner.

Demonstrators gather near the Spanish Socialist Worker's Party (PSOE) headquarters in Madrid to demand the resignation of Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Madrid, on June 13, 2025.

From Fringe to Front-Runner: Why the New Right Is Surging in Europe

Javier Villamor August 13, 2025

Sovereignty-first movements dominate the polls—but establishment parties are trying their best to keep them out of power.

Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) party chairwoman Amira Mohamed Ali (C) talks to journalist on April 23, 2025 in Berlin to announce an objection to the official vote count of the last Bundestag elections.

Firewall Finally Crumbles? AfD Set To Work with Wagenknecht Party

Zoltán Kottász July 4, 2025

The two populist forces could dramatically reshape regional governance.

Most Germans Have Had Enough of the Firewall Against AfD

Tamás Orbán April 24, 2025

While establishment parties continue to ostracize the party, only a third of the country supports the cordon sanitaire, with half wanting AfD to be treated as any other democratic party.

AfD Offers CDU Chance to Cooperate

TEC News April 17, 2025

The CDU may be revising its tactics as giving in to leftist demands resulted in a significant drop of the party’s popularity.

Top CDU Leader Urges Rethink on Excluding AfD From Power

Javier Villamor April 16, 2025

Amid growing internal dissent, the CDU faces mounting pressure to revise its strategy and reconnect with its disillusioned base.

Leader of Germany's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Friedrich Merz speaks with Chairman of the Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD) Lars Klingbeil during the constituent session of Germany's new Bundestag (lower house of parliament) on March 25, 2025 in Berlin.

How Far Will Germany Go To Keep the Firewall Against Populists?

Sabine Beppler-Spahl March 27, 2025

The establishment seems to have reached a point where maintaining the facade of democratic responsiveness is no longer even deemed necessary.

Cordon Sanitaire in Action: AfD Denied VP Post in the Bundestag

Javier Villamor March 26, 2025

Erecting a firewall against a right-wing populist party is practiced not only in Germany but across Western Europe by the usual centre-right establishment suspects.

The inscription ‘To the German People’ on the tympanum of the colonnade of the historic building of the Bundestag in Berlin

Bundestag Circumvents Own Rules To Deny AfD Deputy Speaker Position

Zoltán Kottász March 3, 2025

Mainstream parties in Germany continue to ignore the will of millions of voters by upholding the anti-AfD firewall.

‘You’re Not Too Conservative, Right?’—Election Weekend in Berlin

Zsófia Tóth-Bíró February 27, 2025

Spending three days in the German capital was enough to see how the past decade of demonizing the Right destroyed normal dialogue in the country.

Tag: firewall

If You Can’t Beat Them, Ban Them: The German Establishment’s Attack on Democracy

From Fringe to Front-Runner: Why the New Right Is Surging in Europe

Firewall Finally Crumbles? AfD Set To Work with Wagenknecht Party

Most Germans Have Had Enough of the Firewall Against AfD

AfD Offers CDU Chance to Cooperate

Top CDU Leader Urges Rethink on Excluding AfD From Power

How Far Will Germany Go To Keep the Firewall Against Populists?

Cordon Sanitaire in Action: AfD Denied VP Post in the Bundestag

Bundestag Circumvents Own Rules To Deny AfD Deputy Speaker Position

‘You’re Not Too Conservative, Right?’—Election Weekend in Berlin

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