Abstract
Eastern Germany has seen a pronounced rise in support for right-wing extremist actors among young people aged 15 to 25, raising concerns about long-term democratic resilience. This study examines why youth in eastern Germany are disproportionately receptive to far-right ideology and how attitudes are shaped by political socialization, regional identity, and gendered demographic dynamics. It combines a literature review with original survey data from a questionnaire administered in January 2026 to high school students in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The findings suggest that far-right youth radicalization in eastern Germany cannot be explained solely by cultural backlash trends observed in other western democracies. Instead, it reflects a post-reunification political landscape shaped by the interaction of structural inequalities, perceived marginalization, weak civic infrastructure, and identity-based grievances, which far-right actors exploit through narratives of nostalgia, masculinity, and belonging. The paper contributes to debates on democratic deconsolidation in western democracies and concludes with implications for youth-oriented policies promoting civic engagement in structurally marginalized regions.
DOI
10.5642/urceu.GQHC5255
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Luebbert, Tim
(2026)
"The Rise of Right-Wing Extremism Among Eastern Germany’s Youth: A Study of Political Socialization in Germany’s Neue Bundesländer,"
Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union:
Vol. 2026, Article 8.
DOI: 10.5642/urceu.GQHC5255
Available at:
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/urceu/vol2026/iss1/8
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