Local elections in the village: The good old “Keep it up”

The old hotel has long been closed. And in the inn down the street, in whose hall half of my neighborhood celebrated baptisms, confirmations, weddings and various funerals, there hasn't been dancing for a long time. Retail out here in the suburbs is also having a hard time, and even across from the train station, where a few weeks ago a not-so-old Kung Fu master was offering his lessons - you can get your eyelashes lengthened there today. Until further notice.

The story here is the same as everywhere else on the planet: whether it's Hamburg, Frankfurt or Munich. The people are there, and so is the money. But as an entrepreneur, you not only compete with online mail order businesses, but also with the shopping centers in the nearby metropolis, which is why traffic jams on Saturdays are even worse than during rush hour during the week.

While the issue is not new, it was still fairly prominent in last week's local elections. Actually, it's twofold: some want to improve the city center, others want to make traffic flow more smoothly so that it's easier to get away from here. Or something like that.

The rest is ideology: the local election campaign was of course also about origins, but even more so about “politics by handshake” versus technocratic social organization. You don't have to put too much emphasis on the nonsense, but it's still more than just a question of type between one candidate and the other.

And one step further, i.e. completely below the level of content and personnel, the AfD is also basking in the swamp of list votes. All in all, it takes a lot of good will to deal constructively with the “necessarily false consciousness,” as the Marxist says. But you haven't seen him here for a long time either.

To be honest, I didn't bother looking for any analysis of the election outcome. The local newspaper was very active about the election, perhaps they actually tried one. What would have to come up in this study, if it existed, would definitely be the question of what actually happened to the good old dissatisfaction with politics.

Not only was voter turnout high, but the talk of the town over the past few weeks also seemed strangely politicized. Although – as I said – largely free of content, it is still unusually energetic. Some even predicted a turning point and major developments, even if no one wanted to explain what was actually meant.

Of course, part of the excitement is due to the AfD. She occasionally came by with a stand that generated attention - mainly because of the counter-rallies on the other side of the street. In the end, it wasn't so bad: the AfD has made massive gains compared to last time, but remains just as well below the national trend. It's the little things...

What seems paradoxical, and not just in this election: If everyone simply voted cold-heartedly based on materialistic self-interests, then there would be no AfD because, after all, it has nothing to contribute to retail or transport. Abstract hatred apparently trumps even self-interest.

A simple “keep it up”, one has to say today, is perhaps not necessarily the worst thing. Next week there will be a runoff election between the mayoral candidate and the mayoral candidate. The AfD no longer plays a role - and I wouldn't be surprised if participation then plummets again.