German president calls far-right surge in polls 'worrying'

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the surge of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in the polls was "worrying" in an interview on Sunday.

As part of his summer interview with public broadcaster ZDF, the German president said far-right parties were preying on voters' fears without offering solutions.

"We must not encourage the business of fear-mongers in this society any further," Steinmeier said.

"What we need is not a boom of fear-mongers, but a boom of problem-solvers. And it's not as if we don't have any of those."

Steinmeier said the rise of the AfD shows that traditional parties have not adequately addressed the concerns of certain parts of the population.

The AfD polled at 20% in a recent nationwide survey, making it the second-most popular party. It is now eyeing wins in upcoming state elections in the east.

"Yes, the polls are worrying," Steinmeier said.

"But they must not lead us to automatically classify every critical question as populism and right-wing extremism."

What Steinmeier said about protest votes

Steinmeier's comments come after the far-right AfD won its first victory for a governing position last month.

On June 25, AfD candidate Robert Sesselmann was elected as district administrator in the small eastern town of Sonneberg. The role is similar to that of a county commissioner in the United States. 

All other parties had thrown their support behind the incumbent conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) candidate Jürgen Köpper.

Shortly thereafter, the AfD's Hannes Loth was also elected the party's first-ever mayor in the small town of Raguhn-Jessnitz, which lies in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt.  

Steinmeier warned Germans against protest voting, where people spoil their ballot to express dissatisfaction, in such situations.

"Every voter takes responsibility for what he or she does," he said.

This also applies, he said, if one "strengthens a party that contributes to the brutalization of the debate."

zc/wd (dpa, AFP)

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