Germany’s far right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is using a symbol of eastern German identity, the iconic Simson moped, to attract voters ahead of a key state election in Saxony Anhalt on September 6.
Nearly 5,000 people attended an AfD campaign event and motorcycle show in the medieval town of Quedlinburg on Sunday, where the party’s leading candidate, Ulrich Siegmund, led a motorcade on a blue moped.
The election could see the AfD become the first far right party to take power at state level in Germany since the Nazi era.
The party has embraced the Simson brand, sometimes described as the “Vespa of East Germany,” as part of its appeal to voters who retain a strong sense of eastern German identity more than three decades after German reunification.
Siegmund, 35, said the Simson represented freedom of movement and a period when people in the former East Germany felt a strong sense of community. The AfD’s “Vision 2026” manifesto also presents eastern Germany as a potential model for the rest of the country rather than a disadvantaged region.
The strategy appears to be gaining support among younger voters. Based on the 2025 federal election results, AfD support among voters aged about 18 to 34 in Saxony Anhalt increased to around 40%, from roughly 25% in the 2021 election.
The Simson brand, however, carries a complicated history. The company was originally founded as a weapons manufacturer by two Jewish brothers in the 19th century. Their family later fled Germany as the Nazis rose to power. After World War Two and the division of Germany, the company became known for motorcycles and mopeds, particularly the Schwalbe and S50 models.
Descendants of the Simson family have criticised the AfD’s use of the brand, saying the party’s positions on immigrants, people of other races and sexual minorities are incompatible with the family’s values.
The Center for Intercultural Understanding Dresden has also launched an online petition calling on the current trademark holder to take action against the AfD’s use of the brand. The petition had attracted nearly 24,000 signatures.
At Sunday’s event, about 100 anti AfD demonstrators were separated from supporters by police.
Sociologist Daniel Kubiak of Humboldt University of Berlin said the AfD had been able to exploit longstanding feelings of disadvantage in eastern Germany. Although living standards in the region have largely caught up with western Germany, concerns over financial security and perceptions of unequal opportunities remain strong.
Kubiak said the party’s East German identity campaign was flexible and largely built around feelings of marginalisation, allowing it to adapt its message to different groups of voters.
The September 6 election will therefore be an important test of whether the AfD’s strategy of combining far-right politics with symbols of eastern German culture can translate into state-level political power.
Leave a comment