A new ARD survey has produced a clear result: AfD supporters show the greatest tolerance towards people with different opinions.
In the survey ‘Your opinion counts!’, respondents were asked to agree or disagree with the statement: ‘I want as little to do as possible with people whose political views are completely different from mine.’
Only 19 per cent of supporters of Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) agree with this statement. 73 per cent reject it. This means that those who support the AfD are the most tolerant towards people with different political views, according to Bild.
Compared with the other parties in the Bundestag, the AfD is considerably more tolerant towards political opponents.
33 per cent of CDU/CSU supporters, 34 per cent of the Greens and 35 per cent of SPD- and Left Party supporters stated that they wish to have as little to do as possible with people who think very differently from them politically.
In other words: whilst only around one in five AfD supporters wish to keep their distance from those with different political views, the figure is more than one in three for both the SPD and the Left Party.
This is interesting, as the left tends to portray itself as tolerant.
Otherwise, the survey shows that belief in democracy remains strong in Germany. 87 per cent regard it as a good form of government. However, nearly two-thirds are dissatisfied with how democracy actually works in Germany.
