Traffic chaos promotes AfD: Study reveals surprising election correlation!

Traffic chaos promotes AfD: Study reveals surprising election correlation!

A current study by Greenpeace and Ippen.media proves a worrying connection between a poor range of local public transport (public transport) and the increase in votes for the AfD in the Bundestag election 2025. This comprehensive analysis of election data from 11,000 German municipalities shows that about a quarter of the population that are difficult to connect bus and train. If one looks at the election behavior in these regions, the results are clear: there the AfD achieves significantly higher votes.

The study that entitles the cross with the public "emphasizes that the effect can be observed particularly strongly in Hesse, where the AfD received 17.7% of the first and 17.8% of the second votes. Especially in rural communities in which the public transport offer is sparse, approval of the AfD is growing. In places such as Schotten, Leun, Wächtersbach, Frielendorf and Großalmerode, the AfD became the strongest political force in some cases.

regional differences in the influence of public transport

The evaluations show that the influence of local public transport on the election behavior varies regionally. While a clear connection between poor connection and high AfD votes is particularly detectable in southern Germany, especially in Bavaria, there are no significant effects in northern Germany. In the new federal states, on the other hand, the AfD voters in regions reach 38% with a “very good” public transport, while 46% of the votes are possible with poor connections.

The study evaluation also shows that the support of the AfD in areas with poor public transport is particularly pronounced. This tendency is reinforced by the fact that parties such as the SPD and the Greens perform poorly in these regions, while the CDU/CSU only shows a slightly positive influence. In an environment in which access to public transport is restricted, other social factors such as the closure of schools and hospitals can also promote approval from the AfD. These observations are in line with the results of the investigation, which show that inadequate investments in the infrastructure reduce trust in politics.

social effects and political distrust

Greenpeace and Marissa Reiserer emphasize the democratic relevance of well -developed local transport. The lack of access to the bus and train can significantly restrict social participation and increase the feeling of hanging. Reiserer explains that suspended people often have greater distrust of political institutions and thus become more receptive to right -wing populist narratives. This leads to a vicious circle that undermines the democratic system and further erodes confidence in the state institutions.