Historian Rödder warns: the left is inciting civil war

German historian and former chairman of the CDU's Basic Values Commission, Andreas Rödder, has issued a serious warning: political violence in Germany is increasingly coming from the left, threatening not only public order but also democracy itself. His words are particularly relevant ahead of the September 6 elections in Saxony-Anhalt, where police are already preparing for a tense election night.

Left-wing violence: a new reality

Rödder, who for a long time refused to compare 2026 with 1932, now admits that his argument is losing ground. Previously, he relied on the fact that there are no "hall battles" or similar outbreaks of violence in public spaces in Germany. However, current trends compel him to note with concern: "It is precisely the left that is inciting civil war here, and one must be very, very careful."

Of particular concern is that the violence is being used by the political left, which considers itself the defender of democracy. According to the historian, Germany must be wary that those who declare themselves defenders of liberal democracy do not become not only authoritarian but also openly violent.

The CDU's three-way dilemma

After the elections, the CDU will find itself in an extremely difficult position. The latest ARD poll shows that the AfD could receive 42 percent of the vote, while the CDU only 22 percent. Whether the AfD will gain an absolute majority of seats will depend on how many votes go to parties that do not cross the 5 percent threshold. Rödder sees three equally problematic scenarios:

• Adhering to "inadmissibility" decisions regarding the AfD and the Left Party and refusing to participate in forming a government – in such a case, after a failed prime ministerial election, new elections may have to be called, and in the second round the AfD candidate Ulrich Siegmund could win.
• Forming a "grand coalition against the AfD" – this would require breaking or "stretching to the maximum" the inadmissibility decision regarding the Left Party, which would accelerate the flight of CDU voters to the right and cause internal discord.
• Forming a CDU-led minority government that would seek various votes, including AfD support – such a model, supported by the leader of the Saxony-Anhalt Young Union, Nico Elsner, would, in Rödder's opinion, cause "major upheavals" within the CDU ranks.

Cultural rupture

Rödder emphasizes that any cooperation with the Left Party would be not only a political but also a cultural rupture. The conditions set by the leader of the Left Party faction, Heidi Reichinnek, clearly show how great the distance separating these parties is. The historian does not hide that he sees no convincing answer from the CDU leadership to this dilemma – his proposal to replace the strict "firewall" with clear red lines and more flexible parliamentary cooperation has so far not met with support.

Rödder's warnings sound like a serious call to reflection: is Germany, instead of defending democracy, sliding into authoritarian violence? Are political parties, instead of seeking the common good, guided by narrow ideological interests? These questions are relevant not only for Germany but for all of Europe, where voices defending traditional values are increasingly being silenced.

Source: JUNGE FREIHEIT — https://jungefreiheit.de