Almost nine out of ten people in Thuringia consider democracy to be the best of all forms of government. At 88 per cent, support for democracy thus remains at a very high level. However, only 43 per cent are satisfied with the way democracy works in practice in Germany – a record low in the downward trend observed since 2020. This was revealed by the "Thüringen-Monitor" (Thuringia Monitor) 2024, which researchers from the University of Jena presented to the Thuringian state government on 6 May.

Only 19 per cent of those surveyed said they had confidence in the Federal Government. In contrast, trust in the state government has risen significantly by eight percentage points to 38 per cent compared to the previous year. "This high degree of dissatisfaction with the functioning of democracy and the low level of trust in the federal and state governments can be explained, among other things, by the widespread perception that politicians are not taking sufficient account of the interests of the people and the concern that these people will be among the losers as a result of the economic and social upheavals," says Prof. Dr Marion Reiser. She is the adademic director of the "Thüringen-Monitor" and compiles the report annually together with her team from the Institute of Political Science and the Centre for Research on Right-Wing Extremism, Democracy Education and Societal Integration (KomRex).

Ambivalent attitudes towards democracy

According to Dr Anne Küppers, coordinator of the "Thüringen-Monitor", the current report shows "that the gap between the very high level of general support for democracy as a form of government on the one hand and the negative perception of democracy in practice on the other is widening." Compared to previous years, however, dissatisfaction with the functioning of democracy does not lead to increased support for alternative social concepts or the glorification of historical dictatorships.

Nevertheless, 14 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement "National Socialism also had positive aspects", while 41 per cent believe that the GDR had more good than bad aspects. "Some of these people obviously do not see this as contradictory to their commitment to democracy as the best form of government," notes Küppers.

Ethnocentrism and antisemitism on the rise

The support for right-wing extremist attitudes in Thuringia has remained constant at 20 per cent compared to the previous year. Ethnocentric attitudes have risen for the third year in a row, which is particularly evident in the increased approval for anti-immigration statements. For example, 63 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement "Germany is infiltrated by immigrants to a dangerous degree."

The researchers saw a significant increase in antisemitic attitudes among the Thuringian population. While primary, "v?lkisch" racist antisemitism remains at a comparatively low level, the "Thüringen-Monitor" shows a considerable increase from 39 to 48 percentage points in the approval of secondary antisemitism, i.e. the trivialization of the crimes of National Socialism. There was also a sharp rise in antisemitism related to Israel: 30 per cent of respondents agreed, for example, that Israel's policies are a justified reason for hostility towards Jewish people.?"This is presumably also linked to criticism of Israel's military actions since the attack by the terrorist organization Hamas on 7 October 2023," says Prof. Reiser.

"The results of the current 'Thüringen-Monitor' emphasize how important it is to increase efforts in political education and prevention," summarizes the political scientist. "This is the only way we as a society can become more resilient to anti-democratic tendencies."